Small Mercies
by SniperGirl0907
Summary: Movieverse AU: Things get awkward for the Autobots as the new President of the USA pays them a visit, and old skeletons start to come out of the closet as the Waineright's family history comes to light. Meanwhile, a new adversary puts NEST in danger, and amid the chaos, new secrets come to light. Chapter 6 of the TIFC saga. OC centric.
1. Prologue

**Hey peeps!** **Great to be back! And not before time, geez! I am never taking a break this long again! I very nearly lost my muse for a while, and with this being the busiest January I've ever known, I just couldn't seem to be able to get the time of day: until today. Anyway, I present for your enjoyment, the 6th chapter of the Tomorrow is Forever Coming saga: like I mentioned in my earlier update, updates may be few and far between as I have other projects going on, but rest assured I will be making time to sit down and type. It's just a question of fitting it all in. So to get you hooked on our next leg of the adventure, enjoy the prologue. cheers! :D**

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><p>Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers: just my OC's &amp; the plot.<p>

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><p><span>SMALL MERCIES<span>

Prologue

Washington DC, 24 hours ago:

The night was cold as the autumn winds whipped around the city, chilling and nipping the flesh of all who'd been careless enough to not wrap up warmly enough. A good night to spend by the fire, or snuggled up in a nice cosy bed: away from winter's bitter opening salvo.

But the city carried on as it had always done, regardless of the season: up and down the metropolis the bars and restaurants were busy as usual: for most, a time to unwind and enjoy the night out...

But for others, a chance to drown out their troubles and sorrows...

In a little bar, not far from the city center, hidden at the far end of a small courtyard, Ian Beller was one such unfortunate soul, as he downed his sixth whiskey of the evening: he called to the bartender "Another". The young man discreetly filled his glass, though he was tempted to cut him off, as Beller was now struggling to remain upright on his stool. His drinking buddy on the other hand, was still only half-way through his first bourbon, and still very much sober, as he listened to Beller complain: ", And just like that, they voted me out! _ME!_ The fucking CEO!"

"Well? Given the circumstances, can you really blame them?" Galloway threw in as he took a sip from his glass.

Beller downed his whiskey in one gulp, and ran his fingers through his hair as his stress levels piqued, "...My grandfather built Caerus Global from the ground up: he poured every last drop of blood, sweat and tear its making it what is today: and my old man was no different. Even with Lockheed and Boeing fighting tooth and claw he kept us in the lead; I tried to expand on that success, to take the company to a whole new level. And now? One man cons me out of the money I invested in that expansion, and _I_ get the blame for not knowing about it sooner?! They can all go to hell for all I give a shit! And that back-stabbing low-life Berger can go fuck himself!"

"It's never nice when things don't go your way..." Galloway sighed as he contemplated his own frustrations: "I'm in a serious bind; and if I don't do something to gain the President's favor, I'll be in serious trouble"

"You're not the only one," Beller sighed, as he thought back to the events that unfolded just over an hour ago...

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><p>:Flashback:<p>

The atmosphere in the room was tense; all eyes were upon Beller as he stood before the gathering. First the troubles with his company, and now this...

"What do you mean I'm 'out'?" he exclaimed in disbelief.

"You're out: simple as that" Senator Waineright shrugged casually.

"The fact is Beller, you've become somewhat of a deadweight;" general Hallo stated frankly, "While your company's resources have provided us with the tools we need. Prometheus is not in the business of seeking revenge for perceived slights: what we do, we do for a greater purpose. And you're machinations and delusions of grandeur don't fit in with that purpose. Ergo, you are no longer a member of the outer circle"

Though the fury in his eyes was hard to miss, inside, Beller's temper was reaching its boiling point. But he still had enough self-restraint to keep his composure, and his line of thinking, as something suddenly came to mind. "...The embezzlement of Caerus Global's shares: was that you too?" he asked

A moment of uneasy silence filled the room, before his business partner, Berger spoke up: "We've got our hands in a lot of things Ian, you seriously think we'd go out of our way to push you out of your own company? Just because we voted you out of Prometheus?"

"I don't know?" Beller smiled sarcastically, "You've had your hands in my company for _years_ now; my old man was your favorite, was he not? You made it clear that Caerus was a vital asset to your endeavors: so why not do away with me and keep Caerus for yourself?"

"Now you see, you hit the nail on the head there," Senator Waineright smiled, "Your father _was_ our favorite, and the only reason we kept you around at all was because he convinced us that you'd be of some use to us. And for a while you were..." the smile dropped from her face, "...But after Mission city, you were never the same; It's bad enough you felt cheated out of never having a male hair, but to lose your _only_ hair took a toll on you. And ever since then your petty line of thinking has clouded your out-look on the bigger picture"

"Only the strongest have any chance of living to see the new world order come to power. And we can't achieve that, with small-minded individuals such as yourself weighing us down. However, as a courtesy to your late father; if you have any respect and dignity: you'll leave this circle, and _never_ breathe a word of our existence to anyone" another gentleman stated coldly.

"...You know what happens if you do..." the senator smiled with that cat-like stare of her's.

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><p>:Present:<p>

He _hated_ them,

He hated every single one of them: not least the senator. Countless were the times he'd daydreamed of his bare hands around her throat, throttling her to death and wiping that smug contempt smile off that well-preened face of her's; while the thought of shooting the rest of them up with a machine gun made the corner of his mouth curl into a half smile. He only stayed with them because it's what his father wanted, and because he wanted to stick it to the old man, and show him he wasn't the failure he always said he was.

But now, no longer the CEO of Caerus Global, and no longer a member of Prometheus: nothing else mattered. He had nothing...

Nothing, but wanting the satisfaction of revenge, regardless of what he had to do...

Glancing up at Galloway, an idea began to formulate: amid the uncoordinated and scattered thoughts brought on by the whiskey, and the more he thought about it, the more his inflated ego told him it will work. Being a member of Prometheus, he'd known about Galloway's involvement with the Autobots, and how general Hallo managed to appeal to his narrow-minded view of NEST being surplus to requirement. With the Autobots keeping their heads down, Galloway had no politically acceptable excuse to shut down NEST and detain them.

Not unless, something were to happen that forced them to react; force them into a desperate situation, and could lead them to make a mistake...

And in the process, throw off the balance of Prometheus's carefully laid plans. The idea of those pompous fools running around in a panic like headless chickens brought a sense of satisfaction to mind; the consequences be damned, he had nothing left to loose, if he was going to get revenge on all of them, he may as well do it with a bang. As a satisfactory smile crossed his face, he beckoned Galloway to come closer, as he quietly suggested, "...But I have an idea that could work for us both"

"How'd you mean?" Galloway asked, curious as to where he was going with this.

"You need an excuse, and I need to get pay-back..." Beller replied as he whispered his plan as quietly as possible.

However, Beller's plan hadn't completely gone unnoticed, as another gentleman further along the bar listened in, and took note of what was being said. As he listened, he discreetly slipped his cell-phone from out of his pocket and texted a message to his associates waiting in the parking lot down the other end of the street.

Waiting in a black Mercedes at the far end of the parking lot, the driver heard his cell-phone beep: glancing at the message, he sighed as he let his associate in the passenger seat look at it.

: They voted Beller out, he wants to get them back:

The driver texted back, : how?

: Project circuit breaker

The two men glanced at one another in concern, : srsly?

: srsly. Could get ugly

"...What now?" the passenger asked worryingly.

The driver dialed a number into the cell-phone: he didn't have to wait long before he got a reply. "...Yeah it's me: listen, I need to get a message to the boss. Her old man's up to something; this could be the opportunity she's been waiting for..."

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><p>At the same time, in California:<p>

The view from the mountainside was breathtaking: to the east, the desert ran all the way to Nevada, while to the west, the green fringes of the fertile lands surrounding Tranquility lined the horizon, amid the city lights of Tranquility herself. The rest of the mountain range obscured the north and south. And to the south-west, NEST base laid snugly in the gorge that concealed its presence from prying eyes, not least those of other military spy satellites.

As he steadily reached the peak, the old man leaned on his staff as he took a moment to catch his breath: his lungs weren't what they used to be, nor were his legs.

"You're getting tired in your old age" the old woman in the white dress smirked as she admired the view from her perch atop a flat bolder.

"Your one to talk," he smiled as he straightened up, "Your even older than me"

"True, but then, you're older than everyone on this world combined" she pointed out.

"Don't remind me..." he stated flatly as he approached the edge of the rock face, and gazed down at the base, "...I take it your here to watch the opening salvo too?"

"I take no pleasure in this" she stated seriously

"I know you don't..." he sighed ruefully, "...It's funny, there was time once I would've given anything to see them burn; and now, here I am hoping and praying they'll make it out alive"

"Everything is in place: the chronicle is back where it belongs, and all the players are set to make their moves; the game is ready to begin"

"You make it sound so trivial," he glanced up at her with a disapproving look, "You know better than to treat this lightly. Lives are on the line, and even I can't do anything to stop what's coming..."

"Nor can I..." she dropped her head in regret, "My machinations are but of small significance: compared to the grand scheme of things. I can assure you, I am as powerless as you are..."

"Considering everything that's happened: I'll believe that when I see it" he replied sceptically, as he sat down on a nearby rock, and waited...

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><p>The Laurentian Abyss, 3.7 miles down:<p>

The dive down had been hard, but avoiding the submarine's sonar was even harder; even with the electronic dampener's absorbing the sonar pings, the slightest noise would alert the humans to their presence. The military presence here was nothing short of troublesome: and to even make planet-fall without being detected had been a miracle in itself.

After traversing their way down the walls of the abyssal valley, and finally reaching the bottom: their leader jumped down onto the flat ocean floor, throwing up a cloud of milky grey sediment. As his cohorts joined him, they switched on their headlights, and scanned all around for the object of their search.

**: Spread out and begin searching: according to the scanners he should be here somewhere...: **Shockwave ordered as she strode out across the barren featureless submarine landscape.

While the other Decepticons searched for their target: Shockwave walked some distance across the abyssal floor; as he searched with his scanners, he noticed the various deep sea organisms swimming around. Out of the blackness, a giant squid gracefully glided by, staring at him with its huge dinner-plate sized eyes. Stopping to let the beast pass, he took a moment to admire its morphology, and its predatory nature as it attacked and consumed a large shark. Regardless of whatever one might think of him, he was not a scientist who didn't look to nature for ideas.

As the squid wrapped it's tentacles around its dying prey: Shockwave noticed something out the corner of his one optic, a glint of silver sticking out of the sediment. Walking over for a closer look, the scientist realized it was a piece of an arm; an arm, that ended with a hand full of razor-sharp claws.

**: Master, I think we found him...: **one of the other Decepticons commed him.

Walking over to where the comm originated from, Shockwave found the other cons gathered around the remains of a HUGE cybertronian body; the silver and gunmetal gray told the scientist who it was right away, and the remains of the helm and it's blood red optics confirmed it was Megatron.

**: Looks like someone took him to the smelting pit: **one of the cons grimaced. **: And then some:** another concurred.

**: I know he had the Allspark shoved into his spark, but surely it couldn't blown him apart like this? :** Another con observed as she looked over the remains.

**: No, something must have occurred between now and when he was disposed of: **Shockwave replied. **: But it is of little consequence; the important thing is that his CPU is largely intact, as is his spark chamber: **

**: We also found Blackout and Brawn, their largely in one piece: wouldn't they be better subjects for the procedure? : **

**: In terms of their bodies remaining intact, yes they would: but Megatron was the leader of the Decepticons, for my plan to work it must be him: **Shockwave stated, as he gazed over at the remains of Brawn and Blackout. **: However, having spare parts readily available is always convenient. Gather them up and be ready to move out within fifteen minutes: **

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><p><strong>Don't forget to R&amp;R :)<strong>


	2. Chpt 1: Its Complicated

Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers: just my OC's & the plot.

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><p><span>SMALL MERCIES<span>

Chapter 1: It's Complicated

14 hours ago:

_: And they dismissed him, just like that? :_ Silas asked over the webcam: though the mask kept his face hidden, the surprise in his voice wasn't hard to miss.

_: Hey, that meeting was the first time I learnt they were kicking him out him; if I'd have known before hand I'd have called you...:_ the gentleman tried to explain in a slight fluster, equally taken aback by the situation: _:...You don't think he's going to do anything stupid, do you?:_

Thinking about it for a quick moment, Silas coolly replied, _: Considering his ego, and his relationship with his father; this could prove to be a hazardous decision on Prometheus's part: _

The gentleman blinked in surprise: _: Hazardous? How? I mean-, I know he always felt like he was entitled to a place at the table on account of his father's role with us: but surely he couldn't be so angry as to do something completely reckless? : _

_: Every once in a while, in a quite neighborhood somewhere in suburbia: a man snaps and kills his whole family in a psychotic fit of rage. Or a kid takes a gun to school and kills his fellow students. And when the dust settles, everyone says: 'he didn't seem the type'... I assume it was the senator that made the final ruling on Beller's position? :_

The gentleman nervously swallowed hard, _: She convinced Hallo and the others to vote against him; a couple of the others voiced their disapproval but, she told them to remember their place: _

_:... Did she now? ...:_ Silas sighed in annoyance, _: Where is Beller now?:_

_: Last I checked: he went for drinks with Galloway at his usual watering hole: went home, packed his brief case and called his pilot. Said he needed to get to California by tomorrow: _

_: Tomorrow? :_ Silas didn't move, but something about that had piqued his concern, _: ...I'll take over from here, you keep your ear to the ground and inform me of any further developments; did you find Beller's flight plan?:_

_: That's what's worrying me: he had the pilot scrap the flight plan, using the deep cover encryption on the jet's transponder. He took off from Dulles a couple of hours ago. Why's he heading out there? : _

_: You let me worry about that, you just do as I ordered:_

_: Affirmative:_ the gentleman nodded, and then disconnected the webcam link.

As Silas folded the laptop shut, a frustrated sigh escaped under his breath.

"Problems?" his SIC asked as he entered the room with Arkeville close behind: "Forgive me sir, but I couldn't help but overhear"

"We may have a potential situation: double the security on the facility and don't let anyone into the complex without my authorization, understand?" he ordered.

"Trouble at the top?" Arkeville asked as he folded his arms.

"The senator is beginning to overstep her mark: I'm curious as to why Hallo isn't doing something about it. Her status as mother of the president of the USA be damned" Silas frowned.

"You just answered your question right there" the scientist smirked, "The fact she and the whole Waineright family are political royalty is the very reason we can't get rid of her so easily. Even if we do dress up her eventual death to look like an accident, it'll be too much of a hassle to distance ourselves from"

"She believes now that her son is the president, she's earned her place at the head of the table: but what she fails to realize is that she is but an agent in our greater scheme. The fact she's been given control of her son's device bears no weight how the rest Prometheus views her" the SIC stated.

"That may be, but she is not the kind of woman to conform to a man's sense of priority. She has, and always will cut her own path, no matter how many people she has to tread on to get what she wants. And that's the thing about the Waineright's; they _always_ get what they want: even at the expense of their own children..." Silas warned, before changing the subject. "...But, that aside: why are _you_ out of the lab?" he asked Arkeville.

"Oh, right yes..." the scientist suddenly remembered, "We've hit a slight snag with Project circuit-breaker"

"Define 'slight snag'..." Silas ordered, gesturing for the gentlemen to follow him as he made his way down to the lab.

"Well? The initial systems are working and everything is in the green; but when we fired up the control software, she began giving off some unusual brainwaves..." Arkeville explained as they entered the large lab facility: all around them scientists and engineers worked diligently on a number of weapons and devices. But when they entered the most secure part of the facility: they came to a stop, as they laid eyes upon the unconscious female figure floating in the huge cylindrical tank of pale yellow liquid: wires and IV's keeping her suspended in her deep comatose torpor, while life support machines kept her vitals stable. "...We called in the psychiatrists and neurosurgeons to try and figure out what's going on, and we think she might be having one of her 'episodes' again"

"I thought we finally had those under control?" Silas pressed him.

"So did I: the drugs are working fine, there's been no signs of conscious resistance, and the device we implanted is set to automated control. But we're hesitant to wake her up and begin the test runs. _If_ this is another episode then there's no telling if we'll maintain control, or if she'll break away from her leash all together?" Arkeville stated, trying to emphasis the seriousness of the situation. "Please sir, I'm asking if we can delay the test run until she stabilizes and I can work out a new drug regime, one that won't conflict with the nanites in her system"

Thinking about it carefully for a moment, Silas finally replied: "...Better safe than sorry. Alright, see what you can do: lobotomize her frontal lobes if you have to, but we_ need _to have a hundred percent control before she goes anywhere out in the field"

"Thank you sir" Arkeville respectfully nodded: and returned to his work.

"What happens if the inner circle call for her to engage the Autobots?" the SIC asked.

"I'll deal with them: in the meantime we'll just have to improvise..." Silas replied as he stepped back out into the main lab, and watched several of the scientists work on an unconscious Barricade, who was strapped to an enormous operating table with various wires and cables protruding from his exposed CPU.

"Sir! ..." one of the other troops ran up to him with a piece of paper in one hand, and gave it to him: ", Hallo just emailed: said you needed to see this right away"

Looking over the contents of said email: Silas's concern was evident in his voice: "When is he leaving?"

"As soon as Air Force One is prepped and ready sir"

"What's wrong?" the SIC frowned.

"Change of plans, I need to get back to NEST _imminently_: the president will be paying NEST an impromptu visit" Silas stated as he paced back to his office. The SIC was taken aback as he rushed after him: "What? Why?"

"He just found out about his nieces"

The SIC suddenly realized, "...Oh...I take it you'll need to be there to sort out the impending family drama?"

"Among other things," Silas replied dryly as he reached the office, and turned to face his SIC: "You're in charge until I get back: don't contact me unless there's an emergency, and tell the techs to start looking for Beller: when he shows up keep tabs on his movements and whereabouts, I want to know what he's up to" and without another word, he closed the door.

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><p>The present, NEST Base, 8:15 am:<p>

The air was unusually cool for this hour of the day, and the morning light was a little dimmer than usual, as the sun took its time climbing up over the distant mountain range, trying to push through the thick cloud cover that kept the desert heat to a minimum. The tarmac on the open-air hanger was still wet from the heavy rainfall the night before, as water continued to run off the three giant cybertronian ships in rivets and streaming trickles. A perfect opportunity then, for Lazerbeak and Buzzsaw to wash and preen their wings atop Omega Supreme's main thrusters, while down on the ground near his struts, Annabelle, Jay-jay, Violet and Sparklestar delighted in playing about the puddles and standing under the larger trickles with their little pink umbrellas.

Keeping a watchful eye over them, Hailey stood near the front of Omega Supreme's forward-most canons, as she sipped her coffee and zipped up her uniform jacket, trying to keep the coolness of the air at bay. The sound of distant jet engines caught her attention, as she watched Novastar and Skywarp disappear into a thick low-lying cloud. Seeing those two together never failed to bring a smile to her face, and secretly, she was happy for the both of them; given the fact that their romantic involvement with each other was still a secret.

"Is it just me or is it colder today?" Becky thought aloud as she and her twin sister joined their elder sibling at her side, staying huddled together for warmth.

"Winter's not far off now; soon be Christmas before you know it" Hailey sighed as she downed another swig off her coffee.

"Do we get snow out here in the desert?" Becca asked offhand,

"We're right next to the mountains, so I guess so?" Hailey shrugged; "Where've you two been anyway?"

"Checking the news updates? It's all everyone's watching inside: they've had the TV in the rec room on all night" Becky replied.

"Ah..." Hailey smiled in realization, "That would explain why they've been up there all morning" she watched as Skywarp and Novastar descended out of the clouds, in preparation to land in the gorge. Within seconds the two flyers transformed as they dropped out of the air, and landed on the tarmac; much to the delight of the little ones.

"Good time?" Hailey smirked as they approached.

"Ah-..." the seeker nervously hesitated, as he noticed the two drone-eagles sitting atop the ship, eying them curiously.

"Oh don't worry about those two," Becca thumbed over the drones, who promptly took off, "See? They're not interested"

"And besides, they don't gossip; so chill okay?" Hailey assured him.

"She's right sweetie," Novastar smiled as she hooked her arm around his, "Everyone's still inside watching TV, there's no one else but us out here"

"Yeah well-, let's not get careless okay?" he nervously unhooked his arm from her's and patted her on the shoulder, "You never know _who_ might be watching" he gestured to the four youngsters, who were gazing up at them with eager smiles and giggles.

"Sooooo?" Annabelle chimed teasingly.

"So what?" Skywarp eyed her sceptically: he was well aware of the Lennox offspring's cunningness, and knew that whenever she used that delightful-yet-scheming tone, it usually meant trouble.

"Mommy said you're gonna be babysitting us for the _whole_ morning, and you know what that means!" she placed both hands on her hips and stared him down with her usual air of authority (or rather, stared up: given that he was over twenty five feet taller than her). Without missing a beat, Skywarp reached down, picked all four youngsters up, and placed two a piece on each shoulder-plate. "Happy?" he droned reluctantly.

"Quiet peasant! The princesses are in the house, and we're ready for the royal breakfast!" Annabelle ordered as she pointed to the door, "_To the mess area!_" she ordered, with Jay-jay, Sparklestar and Violet chiming in. _'Still a better option than the alternative'_ the seeker reminded himself as he paced away towards to entrance of the base, with Novastar and the Waineright sisters trying to stifle their giggles as they followed after him.

The mood inside the base however, was anything but a happy one.

As they made their way towards the human mess area and rec-room, the electric tenseness of the atmosphere could be felt all around: and in the rec-room, everyone who wasn't on duty, or was already working in the mess area, had been glued to the huge plasma TV on the far end wall throughout most of their shift. Even the Autobots had been swept up in the fervor of shock and bewilderment at the death of the American president. Inside the base, the news had come as a great shock for the humans: but further afield, out across the rest of the country, it hadn't been twenty four hours since his death the day before, and already it was the top-most trending topic online, and the _only_ news on all the TV news channels. You just couldn't get away from it, even if you buried yourself in a deep hole in the middle of the desert. And for those that tried to get on with their work, the gossip and water cooler talk was everywhere within earshot.

"Hey girls," Miles greeted the sisters as they strolled into the rec-room, "You catch the latest update? The coroner recons it was a heart-attack. Dude hasn't gone cold yet and they already swore in the new guy last night"

"They swore in the vice-president already?" Hailey glanced over at the TV, and saw the new president addressing the press with assurances of commitment and living up to his predecessor's standard. The cold knot that had subsided, suddenly returned to her stomach with vengeance, and as her guardian strode over to greet her, the look of unease on her face didn't escape his notice. "Hailey? Are you okay?" Bluestreak asked concernedly. "I uh," Hailey took a deep breath, and tried to keep her mind (and eyes) off the TV, "-I'll be fine: Warp's got Jay-jay and the other kids up 'till lunch, so what's first on our duty roster for today?" she smiled up at him, as he offered her his hand.

"Sniping practice, so we gotta drop by the gun cages to load up first" he explained as he sat her down on his shoulder, "I was thinking maybe Jay-jay and the kids might like to join us? You know how they like to see me hit the long-range targets" he smiled as he left the rec-room; but once they were some distance down the corridor, the gunner dropped the act, and dived into one of the large alcoves in the wall, beneath one of the large walk-way's.

"Are you okay?" he asked her worryingly.

"No I'm not!" she frowned as she pressed her hand to her forehead, "Now that he's the president he's going to be included on the NEST classified access list, and you know what that means!"

"I know but-, maybe he won't make such a big deal out of it?" Bluestreak suggested, but Hailey shot him a rather sideways look. "...Okay, maybe not" he sighed as he tried to find something positive to go on, "Look, I know this isn't an easy subject for you or your creators, but maybe? He may not make such a big deal out of it?"

Trying to think straight for a moment, Hailey considered her list of options, while at the same time, trying to keep her anxiety in check. "...Maybe I'm reading too much into this?" she thought aloud, "Let's just get through the day okay?"

"Okay" Bluestreak nodded, "But you know, if you ever want to talk, I'm always-

He paused as Hailey planted a kiss on his cheek-plate: if Bluestreak could blush, he'd be as a pink as a raspberry, "I know..." she smiled, "Thanks Blue,"

"...By the way, the sniping practice? Its tandem drive and shoot, so you'll need weapons too" he added.

"Drifting?"

"Of course"

"Sweet" she smiled in satisfaction.

"You okay? You took off without us" Becca huffed as she and her twin jogged to catch up with them,

"Sorry about that" Hailey apologized, "Still worried about-, you know"

"We know" Becky smiled dryly up at her, "You're not the only one remember?"

"Yeah..." Hailey sighed, "Come on, you can watch me and Blue tandem snipe n' drive some targets.

A short walk soon brought them to the gun cages: the big ones that housed the bots weaponry, as well as some modified miniature weapons for the humans usage. Security here was understandably tight, and only one person could enter at a time. After Bluestreak had been cleared, Hailey got out her ID card for the digital key-lock, and looked straight at the retinal scanner. But as she swiped her card, the door's digital lock flashed red, with an 'access denied' suddenly appearing on the tiny monitor. Frowning in concern, she swiped the card again, but again the lock flashed red and she couldn't go in. "What's up?" Bluestreak asked as he came back out.

"My card's not working," Hailey frowned as she looked the card over for any sign of damage, but none was present, "I know I checked in with security last week for the new passwords. Red alert didn't send out another last-minute change-to-the-system memo did he?"

"Hang on a sec," Bluestreak turned away as he activated his comm, **: Darren? :**

**: Speak and be heard, what can I do for you? : **The teen hacker smiled as he lazily lounged about in his office chair.

**: Hailey's security clearance on the gun cage has been frozen; did Red reset the system without forwarding a reminder again? :** The young gunner asked.

In the command center, Darren wasted no time in pulling up the necessary information needed, **: Just one moment and I shall be-**. But when the information concerning Hailey's security clearance popped up on his desktop, what he read stopped his chipper mood dead in its tracks, **: ...Denied?: **

**: Huh? : **

**: According to this, Hailey, Becca and Becky's security clearance has been suspended: **

**: What? For how long? :**

**: Indefinitely: **

Glancing at one another in alarm, Bluestreak frowned.** : Is Bishop in his office? :**

**: He's out right now but I'm already sending him a text, telling him you'll be waiting for him the command center:** Darren replied,

**: We'll be there shortly. Bluestreak out: ** Bluestreak replied as he transformed into his altmode and opened his doors for the girls to get in. Once they were seated, he sped off in the direction of the command center.

Near the corridor intersection, Lizzy and Firefly poked their heads around the corner, and glanced at one another in bemusement. "Access denied?" Firefly whispered. "Think it's a glitch?" Lizzy whispered back; "Hard to say...come on, let's go find out" Firefly transformed, and after Lizzy climbed into her driver's seat, they took off after Bluestreak: being mindful to trail him at a distance.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, in Que's lab:<p>

"Okay, so what's the big emergency?" Ashley shrugged as he sat on the counter-top. His father and Optimus looked on as the scientist rushed about his lab, with Ratchet standing to one side with a daunted look on his face plates.

"The results of the micro-dissection on your hemogon are complete," Que replied as he brought over a sample of said hemogon in a Petri dish, and placed it on the counter-top for all to see. "And suffice to say, the results were absolutely _astounding!_"

"As soon as the micro-dissection was complete he called me to confirm the results. I couldn't believe them myself, and had to run several addition tests to be sure: and every time, we got the same results" Ratchet nervously added.

"A result pertaining to _what_, exactly?" Optimus asked curiously.

"This..." Que pointed to the Petri dish, whilst he held a bot-sized eyedropper in the other hand. "_This, _is a sample of your hemogon, untreated, taken the day you submitted a sample to be tested for the micro-dissection" he pointed to said hemogon.

"Yeah?" Ashley shrugged, wondering where he was going with this.

"And _this_," the scientist held the eyedropper over the Petri dish, "is a sample of ordinary energon. Now watch..." he eagerly explained, as he squeezed the eyedropper; dropping two drops of energon into the dish. Within the blink of an eye, the hemogon exploded in a brilliant flash of vermillion red, making everyone jump back in surprise.

As fast as it had happened, the reaction halted just as quick, and where the Petri dish had been, in its place was a strange beach ball-sized silver metallic substance that seemed to resemble something between a sponge, a lump of coral, and a honeycomb: peppered with little tiny flecks of red crystal-like specks embedded in its structure. Cautiously approaching the mysterious structure, Optimus, John and Ashley were at a loss what to make of it. "_Bloody hell_, what _is_ that thing?" John frowned in alarm, half wondering if something else might happen. But while he was just perplexed, Optimus starred at the thing in a mix of amazement and disbelief. "Is that...Cyber-matter?" he gasped.

"_One hundred percent_ Cyber-matter; with the acceptation of Ashley's DNA tied into its CNA of course, but other than that, it's pure cyber-matter" Que breathed in awe.

"I don't get it, what's 'cyber-matter?'" Ashley frowned up at him,

"It is the most primitive and basic of cybertronian lifeforms: the building blocks upon which _all_ life on Cybertron evolved from, and could be _built_ upon" Ratchet replied.

"Sort of like the first bacteria that were around on earth billions of years ago: from which all life on our planet evolved from?" John assumed out loud.

"The same," Optimus nodded, "Before the war devastated our planet, Cybertron's more 'natural' regions boasted a whole variety of cybernetic lifeforms, with cyber-matter forming the basis of the eco-system. During the war, cyber-matter was cultivated and reproduced artificially, to create terra-forming devices that could turn whole planets into suitable, habitable worlds for our people"

"-Whoa, wait a minute: you're saying this stuff could turn _a whole planet_ into a new Cybertron?!" John gazed up at him in astonishment.

"That was the idea. During the second age of the war: after Cybertron was finally rendered into a barren lifeless husk. Shockwave invested a lot of time and resources into creating a new weapon called 'the seed'. A device that carried a holistic payload of specially cultivated 'super cyber-matter': when detonated on an alien planet, the cyber-matter would propagate at an exponential speed, consuming every organic lifeform it came into contact with, and transforming them into cybernetic lifeforms by replacing their carbon-based DNA with silicon-based CNA at the molecular level. Essentially, turning the planet and all its inhabitants into a new Cybertron..." Ratchet explained ruefully, "Though, the process _killed _the indigenous lifeforms in the process: and cyber-matter_ needs_ matter (organic or otherwise) in order to grow and expand. Hence why, the use of the device was always such a controversial subject for the Autobots. In the end, we decided to destroy them, rather than let them fall back into the Decepticon's clutches"

"Them?" Ashley raised an eyebrow,

"There were ten created in total: seven were disarmed and destroyed by us, two were accidentally destroyed during a seeker attack, and one went unaccounted for during a botched counter-attack against the Decepticon forces on Gorrim 3. As far as we know, there are no seeds left" Optimus stated.

"And...Can_ that _one do the same?" Ashley pointed to the clump of cyber-matter: "You know, turn earth into Cybertron?"

"On its own no, it takes _way more_ than just two drops of energon to create enough cyber-matter to engulf an entire planet. And besides, it seems this particular cyber-matter is half and half; carbon-based, and with your DNA infused into its CNA sequencing (then again that shouldn't be surprising), yet it still retains its silicon-based structuring, without the typical cellular decay that carbon-based life-forms are prone to incurring. Hence it's organic structure and appearance. More of a 'cyborg' than a cybernetic" Que replied, as his expression turned more concerned, almost rueful, "... Though, with the correct cultivation and artificial propagation, it's not impossible to create another seed out of it"

"Which is why we called you," Ratchet turned to Optimus, "I know Ashley's 'unique' transforming capabilities already present a unique situation, one both the cons and Prometheus could easily exploit. But this changes the dynamics vastly. If _anyone_ were to find out cyber-matter can be created from his blood, there's _no telling_ what could happen if someone got their hands on him"

"That, and there's one other thing we discovered from the micro-dissection, " Que added, "We can't be a hundred percent certain, but it's _very possible_ Ashley's new biology can afford him to assume multiple forms, and not just any one at any one time"

"What're saying? That I can turn into more than just-, he morphed into his hybrid form, -_This?!_" he gestured to himself,

"Quite possibly" Ratchet replied.

"But how can such a feat be possible? We've scanned Ashley top to bottom and he does not possess the correct scanning hardware needed to process and assimilate alternative forms" Optimus pointed out.

"Is it possible you could be wrong?" John asked offhand,

"We could? But I'm afraid the data is overwhelming," Que sighed, "And there's too much of _that_ to suggest otherwise"

"This...doesn't make any sense," Ashley admitted as he transformed back into his original human form.

"I know, but we've done all that we can to try and explain this," Que shrugged helplessly.

"Are you sure?" John asked concernedly.

"Well, there is the option of a vivisection, but that completely goes against the grain of our ethical practices" Ratchet stated as he folded his arms, "And besides, the day I agree to participate in such barbarity is the day the pit freezes over"

"Okay..." John glanced over at his son, as he and Ashley exchanged uncertain looks, "So? What do we do with-, this?" he pointed to the cyber-matter.

"Well? There're a few tests I want to run on this specimen: but other than that, I think it would be prudent to step back and take some time to think this over. This revelation is _big _on a number of levels, not least the obvious. There are serious ethical implications to consider, and not just for Ashley's sake" Que stated. "If we don't handle this _particular_ information with the proper care and discretion it warrants; there's no telling what kind of madness could erupt from this".

* * *

><p>Elsewhere:<p>

While the rest of the base buzzed with excitement and concern over the death of the president, and the inauguration of his replacement. Away from the action, in one of the empty storage hangers: Morri slowly paced around, deep in thought, staring down at the hundred and seventy six parchment's that were spread out over the concrete floor: all lined up side by side, their intricate coding all lined up together like a complex puzzle. And sitting on the metal crate beside her, the newly dubbed 'Witwicky Chronicle' sat motionlessly next to the Styrofoam cup of tea. As she reached down to pick up her drink, she continued pacing around the outside of the lined-up parchments. Hoping; willing for something, _anything _to jump out at her. Something amid the tight tangle of cybertronian glyphs that could be part of a pattern, or something familiar that could tie into one of the illustrations in the chronicle. But alas, nothing had thus far caught her eye.

But the more she tried to concentrate on the vast encryption: the more her mind preyed on other pressing concerns. Velocity's secret conversation with the mystery femme in the rec-room, and now Shadowstar's cryptic message:

_She's not the only one with secrets on this base_

Though she was initially concerned about it last night, the more she thought about it now, the more it made the cold knot in her stomach tighten with dread; what else is going on? Besides Velocity's lustful insanity, who else on this base harbors a secret? Sure, everyone has secrets; that was nothing new: but were they the kind to cause great shame and/or embarrassment for the concerned party, or were they the kind that could get others killed? After the incident in the garbage disposal facility with Velocity, Morri dreaded the prospect of history repeating itself: even if the fault wasn't her's, the idea wouldn't stop preying on her conscience. Something was going on: she and everyone else on this base were stuck in the middle, and it made her gut instinct restless to no end.

As her mind circled around the concerns at hand: she wasn't so lost to the world that she didn't hear Soundwave's soft foot-falls quietly approach her from behind. As his vast shadow loomed over her; blotting out the light of the huge halogen lamps hanging from the ceiling, she passed a small sigh: wondering which of her thoughts in particular had grabbed his attention.

"I know humans are keen thinkers: but _your_ mind is buzzing so loudly that it stirred me from my recharge..." Soundwave thought aloud, "What's vexing you so much?"

"Can't you tell?" Morri asked offhand, trying not to sound sarcastic,

"Sometimes, when we worry about more than one thing, it can be hard to pick apart the individual conundrums," the communications officer replied, "Though in your case, I sense there is a singular vexation, from which a number of concerns are branching out from"

"...Have you ever encountered a problem, that: on the surface it could be something or it could be nothing; but deep down, your instincts tell you that it's more than something, and it has the potential to turn into something dangerous..." Morri thought aloud, as she continued to study the parchments.

As he tried to make sense of her troubled thoughts: sifting through her recent memories, Soundwave began to sense of the origin of Morri's vexation. "...I have a distinct feeling you're not talking about the encryption on these parchments..." he knelt down beside her; managing to tear her eyes away from the parchments and gaze up at him, she met his concerned gaze with an unreadable look. As if unsure what to feel: "... What's wrong?"

"...I learnt something last night" she admitted with unease,

"From Shadowstar?"

"Yes: but this time I don't think it was one of her typical outbursts... Though I can't be sure, I got the distinct impression she was scared of something, or, someone, maybe? ..." Morri thought aloud as she sipped her tea.

Sensing the memory of her encounter with Shadowstar last night; Soundwave too got the distinct impression that she was scared: "...May I ask, what was the purpose of your meeting with her last night?" he asked,

Thinking about it for a moment, Morri replied, "...I found out she did something-, _wrong_: I confronted her about it, and gave her the chance to do the right thing and come clean about it"

"You didn't tell anyone else about it?" Soundwave asked concernedly: sensing the seriousness of the situation she encountered,

Morri looked up at him: she wanted to tell him the truth, but then it would sort of defeat the whole purpose of Shadowstar owning up to her wrong-doing. "...I did. But I pointed out that it's _her_ mistake to correct; and to give her the chance to make amends"

Sensing through her memories for the incident in question, and what followed subsequently: Soundwave discreetly nodded, "...Well? That was very honorable of you: considering, it must not have been an easy position to be in"

As she began to get the impression he was reading her thoughts: Morri sighed, "...Okay. So what's worrying you?"

"Excuse me?"

"Soundwave, _I know_ you're reading my mind and being too polite to say so: so tell me, what's _really_ worrying you about me? Isn't that why you came down here? This hanger isn't exactly on the way to the rec-room or command center"

Sighing in exasperation, Soundwave replied: "I can sense Velocity is still preying on your mind: though what happened has been resolved and you've made amends with all concerned. You're worried about history potentially repeating itself, in one form or another"

Passing a heavy sigh, Morri admitted: "...Velocity had me trapped, Deathshot wasn't able to be decisive about her: and we both nearly suffered for it. Now that everyone knows what she is, she doesn't worry me so much now that she's in the brig; but what Shadowstar told me last night? _That's_ what got me worried..." she laid a hand on his knee, thinking back to Velocity's secret meeting with the mystery femme in the rec-room: "...I can't help but wonder if something else is going on around here, and she was somehow mixed up in it..."

The question of whether there was something else going on wasn't as farfetched as it sounded: though he hadn't known Morri very long, Soundwave could tell she was a logical thinker, who relied on reason and instinct to overcome any obstacles in her way. Although the incident with Velocity had her struggling to find a way out, for the most part, she wasn't one to not act on a hunch if she sensed that it warranted close scrutiny. And right now, going on her memories of past events as she perceived them, and how she reacted to them: Soundwave surmised that there was something to her suspicions. That; and the fact that he could sense something of the other minds of the Autobots concerned, had him wondering if indeed, there was something that could present a problem.

"... Perhaps?..." he thought aloud, "Maybe, something else will present itself in time. Though for now, I recommend watching, and listening; you'd be surprised by just how much you can learn from observation. Do not go rushing in to look for answers where there may, or not be any"

Considering his suggestion, Morri nodded in agreement: "...Sounds like the sensible thing to do" she smiled up at him, "But then, it's kind of second nature to you, I'd expect"

"You wouldn't be wrong there," he smiled back, "But there is a limit; you can only pry so much, before you find something you were not meant to find. Sometimes, some secrets are _not meant_ to be brought into the light of truth"

"Why? Because their too dirty?"

Soundwave's look seemed to turn wistful: "...Because: sometimes, they're too painful..."

Sensing there was something to that, Morri decided to leave it alone for another time. She was about to say something else, when Deathshot appeared at the door. "There you are, Tom said you were down here having another 'crack' at the parchments: any luck?" the sniper asked as he stepped into the hanger.

"Alas, it continues to elude me" Morri sighed, "I take it there's been no change upstairs in the rec-room?"

"Everyone's still watching the TV," Deathshot shrugged, "Though I don't see what the point is? The previous President has been dead since yesterday morning, and the vice-president was sworn in last night. I'd have thought it'd be back to business as usual?"

"I know, but a heart-attack is such an unforeseen way to go, even if you're in good health. I think for a lot of Americans, it just bares such a resemblance to Kennedy's death" Morri reasoned.

"But Kennedy was assassinated with a bullet to the head: the shock and horror of _his_ death is understandable, but a heart-attack? It just seems so, _over-dramatized_" Deathshot grimaced slightly.

"Let me guess, they're watching the news via the Fox news channel?" Morri raised a skeptical eyebrow,

"Why yes" the sniper nodded

"_Figures_..." Morri huffed dryly, before changing the subject, "Anyway, I got to get this back to my room and lock it away," Morri gulped down the last of her tea, moved towards the crate, and picked up the Witwicky Chronicle, "And then we can get on with the rest of the day" she smiled up at her guardian.

"Oh-, I nearly forgot, could I borrow the parchments for a while? I came up with a new puzzle-solving algorithm last night that I want to try out on the encryption" he gestured to the parchments, "Figured it couldn't hurt to try tackling this from another angle?"

"Yeah sure," Morri nodded, "Just be sure to give them back to Sam when you're finished". As Deathshot knelt down and extended his hand for her climb into: she placed the book in his palm, climbed onto his hand, up his arm, and onto her usual perch on his shoulder. "Later 'Wave" Deathshot waved Soundwave good-bye.

"Later' " Soundwave returned the farewell, and got to work scanning the parchments in greater detail.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, up in the Command center:<p>

As he scanned the data on his laptop, Bishop looked up at the security tech standing before his desk: while Hailey, Becca, Becky and Darren stood to one side, watching and waiting with concern. "Why has the girl's security clearance been suspended, when _I personally_ cleared them myself?" he demanded sternly.

"I know, and I'm _sorry _sir, but the order came straight from the Pentagon: with the emphasis that your order to reinstate their clearance be deigned until further notice" the tech replied anxiously.

Incredulous, Bishop got up from his chair; "_Under whose authority?!_" he exclaimed.

"Uh? The president sir? He gave the order _personally_ through Director Galloway: you can check the authorization code if you don't believe me..." the tech pointed to the laptop: turning his attention back to his computer, Bishop brought up the necessary data, and stared at the laptop in disbelief. "...Did he _at least_ specify the reason for denying their clearance?" he added.

"Not really sir, only to tell you that the girls are to be struck from the classified access list; and that his reasons for doing so are personal" the tech replied.

"What?!" the twins exclaimed incredulously.

"I don't understand," Darren blinked in surprise, "I know he's the president an' all, but _what the hell's_ going on?!"

"I don't know: but I intend to find out," Bishop stated as he folded his laptop shut. "Put a priority one alert through to Galloway; tell him I _must_ speak with the president _immediately_" he ordered as he turned to leave.

"That-, isn't going to be necessary sir," the tech quickly interjected, his anxiety rising as he swallowed hard, "The president, along with Director Galloway are coming _here_ as we speak: Air Force One took off from Washington three hours ago"

Bishop stared at the man in disbelief: "And I'm only hearing about this _now?!_"

"We just found out as you arrived back here sir, that's what I was _going _to tell you until you inquired about Miss Waineright's security clearance"

"Wait a minute," Hailey quickly interjected, "The president, Lawrence Waineright is coming _here?_ _To NEST?!_"

"The plane should be touching down at quarter to eleven," the tech told her, before turning his attention back to Bishop: "It's short notice to say the least; we haven't got anything ready,"

"Okay..." Bishop sighed in exasperation as he pressed his hand to his forehead: "Get everyone up here, whatever their doing tell them to drop it, this takes _top priority _above everything else: tell Red Alert to get security on the ball and get all the necessary protocols in place; I want this base _locked down tight_ once the president is inside and safe, and place external base security on high alert"

"Yes sir" the tech nodded, and quickly left the office.

"The president's coming here?!" Darren gawked offhand,

"For the brightest mind on the base I'm surprised you only just realized that," Bishop dryly sighed, as he regarded Darren with a rather sideways look. "You're free to go by the way; thank you for bringing this to my attention"

"Uh, no problem, but sir: _what's going on?_" Darren pressed him.

Glancing over at Hailey: Bishop saw the look of anxiety and alarm in her eyes: as if her mind seemed to be processing all that she had just heard. Clearly, she didn't know about the president's imminent arrival: nor the fact that he authorized her removal from the classified access list. Her sisters too looked to be in equal disbelief as they stood closer to their elder sibling, as if out of instinct to remain safe. His frustration eased off a little, as he realized that, perhaps it would be best to let the girls handle this in their own way.

"...I'll let Miss Waineright fill you in on the details" he simply replied: the girls stared at him in disbelief, "You're dismissed, Mr Ainsley"

Darren glanced at Hailey in confusion, then back at Bishop: "I'll-, wait outside" he stated quietly, and stepped out of the office. As soon as the door closed behind him: Hailey approached the desk, "_You knew?!_"

"The fact the now-president of the USA is your uncle? _It's hardly a secret_ Miss Waineright," Bishop stated as he came around the desk and stood face to face with her, "...When your uncle won the vice-presidential election, I knew that if he became president that could-, _would _present a certain level of, shall we say, _'unusual complexity'_. Now personally, I have no qualms with you or your sisters being part of NEST, despite your family's political status. But evidently your uncle doesn't feel the same way"

"But _why_ would he want us gone from NEST? How did he even know in the first place?!" Becca exclaimed,

"NEST is one of the few above-classified operations that the president is privy to know about; after his inauguration he would've been briefed on all classified and above-classified military operations currently in action. Evidently, when he was briefed about NEST, he learnt of your association with us" Bishop replied,

"_I get that_, but why's he kicked us out?" Hailey demanded, her temper rising slightly.

"..I don't know..." Bishop sighed, at a loss what to say: "But whatever his 'personal reason' is, it had better be a damn good one is all I can say"

Calming down a little, Hailey mentally strained to steady her nerves, and tried to think of what to do next. "...I don't know who else on the base knows about him; being our uncle, I mean"

"Well, Now that he's coming here, that fact's going to become widely known one way or another. You've got over two hours before he arrives: however you decide to handle this, I'll leave it at your own discretion" Bishop stated,

"Thank you sir"

"Don't thank me just yet," he replied as he turned to leave the office, "I've got to try and persuade him to change his mind. You're a valuable asset to this team, all three of you: and I don't intend on letting _any _of you get kicked out without a fight". As Bishop left, the Waineright sisters followed him out, but paused at the door when they saw Darren waiting for them: as Bishop paced off along the walk-way, heading towards the command center's central platform, Hailey beckoned Darren to follow them, as the sisters headed off in the opposite direction.

"What're we gonna do?" Becca asked her older sister: Hailey pulled her cell phone from her pocket, and handed it to her: "_Call dad_, tell him what's happened and tell him to get here ASAP, we're going to need help"

"Care to tell me what _that_ was all about?" Darren pressed her,

"There's something I need to tell you; and everyone else..." Hailey sighed in exasperation as she paced off back to where she left Bluestreak waiting by the walk-way's central mezzanine.

* * *

><p>Sometime later, in a secret location somewhere in California:<p>

The base buzzed with activity, as the troops, scientists, engineers and other personnel went about their work: undisturbed, unfazed, committed one hundred percent to carrying out and completing their assigned tasks. Perhaps too committed: too concerned about their tasks at hand; for it was strangely ironic, that an ordinary civilian business man like Ian Beller, could just slip into the base unnoticed...

Beller was many things, but stupid wasn't one of them.

He'd been with Prometheus long enough to learn their tricks, and how to apply them to his own needs; one such trick, was knowing how to use their own tech against them. Deceiving the base's security, and allowing him access to the base's most well-guarded interior was no real challenge...

The challenge: would be waiting for the right opportunity.

As he snuck into the observation room that overlooked the main laboratory, he spotted the reason for his being here. The huge cylindrical containment unit was hard to miss, the motionless figure floating in the fluid inside, less so. But there were too many people around her: fooling the brainwashed Decepticon's optics was easy enough, and the AI-controlled weapons that backed them up hardly required any skill, given the tech he carried with him. But the humans were a different matter: there were armed guards standing around the lab, scientists and technicians bustling around. If he was going to get down there and be right up close to his target, he was going to need a plan to get them all out, and _keep_ them out.

As he stepped back from the window, and stood against the wall near the door. He carefully considered his options: and what was the most he could make of them...

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, 10.000 feet up in the air:<p>

Galloway bit his thumb nail nervously as he watched the clouds far below; he was beginning to regret the events of last night...

* * *

><p>: Flashback:<p>

"You need an excuse, and I need to get pay-back..." Beller replied in a low hushed voice, leaning in closer to Galloway, as he explained: "Now, don't ask me how I know you work for NEST, that's not important; what's important, is that _you're_ in a unique position to help me out, and _I'm_ in a unique position to help you out. You need the president to see the Autobots for the phoneys they are: I can help you with that, and in return, the chaos that'll ensue, will guarantee to put my 'particular problem' into perspective; and give them the kick in the ass they so rightfully deserve... Now I don't expect any favors or payment in return: just think of me as, 'one guy helping another guy out with his troubles', simple as that: except for one, ever-so-small condition..." Beller grinned,

"What's that?" Galloway dared to ask.

* * *

><p>: Present:<p>

"Are you okay Mr Galloway?" the president asked offhand

"Hm?" Galloway suddenly snapped back to the here and now, "Oh uh-, I'm fine, just-; _concerned_ about the security detail for this visit is all" he quickly lied, trying to regain his nerve as he thought about what lay ahead.

"Well, I think our boy's have everything in hand," the president smiled as he watched the F-15's flanking the plane's wings; and then returned his attention to the file he had resting on his lap.

Curious as to what he had in mind, Galloway cleared his throat and asked: "Forgive my prying sir: but _why did_ you suspend the Waineright-, I mean, your _niece's_ security clearance to NEST? It's not like anyone, other than their parents knows the truth, and they've both been deemed reliable to keep their daughter's involvement with the unit a secret. There's no risk of an intelligence leak, if that's what you're concerned about?"

Lawrence glanced at Galloway with an unreadable look; he wasn't the kind of man to show his feelings or emotional state easily: his stoic appearance always seemed to maintain a barrier between him and everyone around him. Either, he was a very privet man who knew how to maintain his poker face, or he was just one of those people who didn't express themselves very often (if at all?). In any case, he kept his intentions well-guarded: and given the fact that he'd singled out his niece's for expulsion from NEST, he had a good idea of what this looked like. And though his staff were discreet in not being nosy and asking why: still, this whole thing had everyone wondering what he was up to. "...It's something a little more than that" Lawrence replied in his usual cool quiet tone, "Potential intelligence leaks are one thing; maintaining one's house and family is another..."

Perplexed as to what he meant by that statement, Galloway decided not to ask: he figured he'd probably find out when they finally get to NEST.

* * *

><p>Sometime later, back at NEST:<p>

"He's coming _here?!_ And we're only hearing about this _now?!_ " Lennox ranted as he and Epps stood to one side with the other, equally frustrated human troops. In the main area of the command center, the Autobots and humans were gathered: all were in a state of bewilderment and surprise at the news of the President's imminent arrival; not least because this was the first time anyone had heard of this. Amid the hubbub of noise and confusion, Darren and Hailey stood behind one of the large computer consoles, in the hopes of having what little privacy could be afforded.

"... And, basically that's it" Hailey sighed in exasperation, as she finished relaying the details of her uncle, and other relations from her father's side of the family. For a moment Darren stood there, a little dazed at this revelation, and mentally face-palming himself for not realizing the connection sooner: "...But, why didn't you say anything sooner?" he asked offhand.

Realizing he had a point, Hailey couldn't think of anything reasonable, other than to simply state: "It just-, _wasn't relevant_, Okay? It's not like there were any reasons to bring it up anyway...And besides, it's not a subject we talk about much, unless we _need_ to" she sighed, "...Not every family's okay with airing their dirty laundry; some things are kept privet for a reason,"

"...I know..." Darren sighed offhand, as he recalled the difficulties he'd had with his own family, not that long ago: "Okay, so, the dude's your uncle, big whoop: but why's he kicking you and your sisters out of NEST?"

"_I don't know_" Hailey stated firmly, "But whatever it is, I don't give a crap: I'm _not_ leaving NEST"

"I don't think the rest of us will want you to go either," Bluestreak discreetly chimed in as he bent down to meet their level, with Trailbreaker close to his side. "I don't care if he's the president of the whole universe, he _can't _kick you out: and he has no right to either" Trailbreaker added.

"Damn straight!" Lizzy grinned as she and Firefly poked their heads around the corner of the console.

"Wha-, how long have you two been eavesdropping?!" Trailbreaker hissed, trying not to draw any attention.

"Long enough" Firefly waved off: "Dude, _the President of the USA is your uncle?_ That's a pretty sick" Lizzy grinned,

"Yeah, well not for me," Hailey huffed as she folded her arms and regarded the two youngsters with a reprimanding look.

"Yeah we caught that bit, so what's his deal with you?" the teen hellion asked seriously as she climbed down from her guardian's shoulder. Hailey was about to reply, when Glen interrupted. "DUDE! Anyone seen Hailey or the twins?!" he called out across the room from one of the command platforms. Hailey stepped out of her hiding place, and made herself known; "What's up?" she called up to him.

"Your folks are at the front gate: said you invited them to come?" the hacker shrugged, not having the faintest clue as to what was going on.

"Yeah I did, tell the guards to let them in" she replied,

"Uh, sorry Hails' but with your security clearance being denied an' all I can't let 'im in" Glen replied sheepishly.

The whole room stopped as everyone overheard that last part, and in a moment, the confusion seemed to pique sharply. Down on the floor, Hailey shot Glen a rather angry and poisonous stare, as if to say: you idiot! While Bluestreak winced with embarrassment. Deciding to defuse the awkwardness before it had a chance to turn into something more embarrassing, Bishop stepped in, and called over to Glen: "Let them in, I'll vouch for them in Hailey's stead"

"Uh, okay" Glen nodded, and returned to his work-station to tell security to let the visitors in. Stepping over to Hailey's side: Bishop leaned in closer and whispered, "What's going on? Why did you ask them to come?"

"I'm _handling it_, okay? Like I said I would" she bit back.

"I just hope you know what you're doing" he whispered

"Hailey? What's going on?" Optimus asked,

"In a minute Prime, I need to see to my parents!" Hailey called over as she ran out the command center with her guardian following close behind.

"What's up with her?" Roxy glanced at her sisters in bemusement,

"Is she up to something we don't know about?" Rosy interjected

"What's going on?" Chelsea concurred

"Something's up, I just know it" Allie thought aloud

"Actually? ..." Darren rubbed the back of his neck as he approached the girls, "It's- kinda complicated"

"What kind of 'complicated?'"Max frowned

"The 'Dr Phil' kinda complicated?" Lizzy interjected as she and Firefly stepped over to them: "Basically, some pretty complicated family shit: don't ask" she waved off.

"What's that supposed to mean? _'Some pretty complicated family shit?'_" Deathshot frowned sceptically as he leaned down closer to them. Firefly and Lizzy both froze; the mere presence of the sniper was enough to send home the message that they'd been found out, "Don't think I didn't see you two sneak off behind the console back there; what kind of trouble have you been up to now?"

"Surprisingly? None today!" Lizzy grinned up at him (and for once she was telling the truth)

"Okay..." Darren smacked his forehead hard, before running his fingers through his hair, "The rec-room, _now!_ I'll explain when we get there". _'I really don't need to be dealing with this'_ he sighed mentally as he beckoned his cousins to follow him. Deathshot, ever discreet, followed after them: with a perplexed Morri sitting on his shoulder, wondering where this was going...

As they left the command center, everyone was left standing and staring: wondering what just happened. Across the room, Optimus motioned for Bumblebee and Jazz to go after them; the two mechs discreetly nodded and left, with their charge's following them at the heels.

"Would someone please tell me what just happened?!" Annabelle exclaimed angrily from where she and the other youngsters had been listening in the far corner of the room, perched atop Skywarp's helm.

* * *

><p>Elsewhere:<p>

"Still no change?" Arkeville asked his underlings as he watched the data scroll across the computer screen,

"Doesn't look like it," the scientist replied as he checked all the monitors hooked up to the containment unit: "Whatever she experienced within that previous episode, it seems to have thrown the device's control matrix for a loop; the software can't get a clear grip on her brainwaves; we may have to reboot the whole system before administering the drugs"

"_Augh_, I was hoping that wasn't the case," Arkeville sighed in disappointment: "Very well: put the device's control automation into C-mode, and make sure she's well and truly doped up. If she wakes up in the middle of this episode there's no telling what could happen..." and with that, Arkeville and the scientists left the lab; with the guards bringing up the rear. "Call Mallory's team and have them meet me in the debriefing room, I need to have her head scanned before we can begin"

"Yes sir" the underling replied with a discreet nodded

"Oh, and do be sure Rook is-

BROOOOM!

The explosion knocked everyone to the ground, and shook the building to its foundations; dazed and confused, they were still scrambling to get back on their feet when the fire erupted in the lab, and quickly began to spread out. As he saw the flames consume half the lab, Arkeville struggled to try and run back in: but his way quickly blocked by the armored doors that slammed down shut, sealing off the complex. "NO!" he slammed his fist against the door.

"Sir! Look!" one of the underlings pointed.

Through the windows looking into the whole lab, Arkeville was shocked to see Beller emerge from the thick black smoke; covering his mouth and nose with a handkerchief with one hand, he made a bee-line for the containment unit.

"What the-, how the hell did he get in?!" Arkeville exclaimed as he watched in dismay,

As the troops tried to override the locking mechanism on the doors, the scientists could do nothing but watch as Beller seemed to be typing something on the containment unit's main computer.

The smoke grew thicker as the flames gradually consumed the lab from all sides: but the central lab, protected by thick walls of bullet-proof glass, was the only area still largely free of the worst of the fire; though it was still hard to breathe as the levels of toxic gases continued to rise. As he brought up the necessary data on the computer console: Beller disabled all the containment unit's security protocols, and initiated the 'the wake-up sequence'; suddenly, red lights flashed and alarms sounded as 'warning: subject unstable' repeated over and over on the console.

From where they stood outside, Arkeville and the other scientists watched in horror as the liquid in the containment unit steadily drained out, and the life-support systems disconnected themselves from the subject, who was now lying limp at the bottom of the unit. "GET THAT DOOR OPEN NOW! HE'S WAKING HER UP!" Arkeville barked in a rising panic.

As he finished disarming the last of the security protocols on the containment unit: Beller felt a rush of intense excitement goes straight through him; for a brief moment it seemed his goal was in sight, as if he'd finally be getting the payback he felt he was so richly entitled to. A satisfied smile curled the corners of his mouth, as he began to imagine the looks of horror and panic on the faces of those who wronged him.

Spotting the microphone on the console, and realizing that it fed right into the containment unit, he switched it on. And leaning in closer, he desperately tried to slow his breathing, and compose his thought's enough to speak: "...I suppose it doesn't really matter now? Eh? All that 'unpleasantness' between us? ...You always _were_ your mother's child: weak, _and soft_; what she saw in you I'll never know. But if you want to prove yourself my daughter: then I suggest you buck up and _listen to me for once in your pathetic life_..." he spoke with venom, as he gave into his ego-driven rage: "I want you to _destroy _my enemies: _burn them_, then _crush them_ into the ground. Do it for me, do it for _daddy_..." he smiled maniacally.

Suddenly, the containment unit exploded in a ball of blue and white fire, sending Beller flying through the air, and through the glass wall, crashing to the burning floor. But strangely, the blue flames didn't emit any heat or burn anything they touched. Dazed, and covered in cuts and lacerations from the shards of glass, Beller tried to pick himself, but as he sat upright, he was horrified at the sight before him...

Outside the lab, everyone watched in alarm, as the figure that had previously been confided to the containment unit, now stood over Beller: blue and while flames of raw energy licking off its form, as it gazed down at him with soulless eyes.

"...Daddy..." the figure whispered, before it consumed Beller in a ball of energy.

The explosion tore the lab apart, blew out the windows and threw everyone across the adjoining complex as the fire turned into an all-out inferno: another explosion ripped straight through the complex: up towards daylight, and out into the open air; where the figure, bathed in its energy, floated up and flew away, making a bee-line for the desert...

As he crawled out from under a large piece of rubble: Arkeville coughed up the smoke from his lungs, and wasted no time in barking out orders to the troops who were still able to stand. As he returned to the now-destroyed containment unit, and looked over at what remained of Beller: for the first time since he could remember, a cold chill ran down his spine...

"Beller you fool: _what the hell_ have you done?" he breathed,

* * *

><p>So, let us review the opening salvo: possible Autobot conspiracy? check. Possible tension in the Waineright family leading to a possible family fall-out? check. And a super-powered super weapon has escaped the bad-guys lab? check. Yep, I'd say the tone for this story has been set quiet nicely :) Don't forget to R&amp;R before clicking off.<p>

See you next time dearies!


	3. Chpt 2: Conspiracy

Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers: just my OC's & the plot.

* * *

><p><span>SMALL MERCIES<span>

Chapter 2: Conspiracy

"Well this is bollocks" Ashley huffed as he watched the commotion from down the other end of the corridor: "The bloke could've at least given a twenty four hour notice; you don't suppose it's a surprise inspection, do you?"

"Who knows?" his father merely shrugged, "But either way, we can't let him _or _Galloway see you"

"_I know that_: I'm not bothered about that" Ashley turned to face him with concern in his eyes: "It's... _the other thing_, that's got me concerned"

"The cyber-matter?" John asked, to which his son nodded: "...I feel so confused; this is _big_, I get that: it's just-, all that other stuff Ratchet and Que talked about. If this whole thing has the potential to become seriously dangerous like they said, what're we gonna do?"

"...I don't know..." was all John could offer. Placing a firm reassuring hand on his shoulder, he looked his son in the eye, and stated: "But I _promise_ you, I'll do whatever I can to keep you safe; I know that's a tall order, given what's going on right now. But whatever happens, neither I, nor your family will _ever _let you come to any harm: Okay?"

Gazing up into his father's eyes: Ashley knew that was a promise, he may never be able to uphold. Keeping his unique transforming abilities a secret from Galloway and the Pentagon was risky enough, but if something happened and the odds weren't in their favor, there was no telling what kind of trouble could erupt from this. But never the less, he _had_ to have faith, that at the very least his father knew what he and Optimus were doing; and it was a stretch to say the least. Though the cat wasn't out of the bag just yet, all this secrecy and deception on his part, was not comfortable to bear. Just about everyone, save his cousins, his guardian, and their most trusted friends: had no inclination of what he really was, what he was now capable of. Part of him thought about whether this was starting to become a case of making a mountain out of a molehill: Ravage had, after all, taught him how to fight: and fight well. It's not like he couldn't stand up from himself if backed into a corner...

But then again,_ if_ the truth did come, would it really be as bad as everyone's making it out to be? Or could it be worse? There was no certainty, and that's what confounded him the most. In a way, it was a fool's errand for his father to make a promise like that; but then, John was, and _always will be_ his father. No parent would ever promise less to their child.

"... Okay" Ashley nodded. Deep down, he _wasn't_ okay with it, but he didn't say anything.

"Hey..." Morri panted as she quickly paced towards them: "Sorry I didn't catch you in Que's lab: How'd the results from the micro-dissection turn out?"

John and Ashley both looked at each other: "...Uh? Well? It's a _bit_ complicated"

"It's nothing bad is it?" she pressed them.

"No its-...Well, _that's just it_, we don't know; it-" John suddenly stopped, when he realized someone was missing, "...Hey, where's D?"

"Oh, he's-, checking something out: it's been pretty-: _hectic_ up in the command center" she replied sheepishly.

"With the president visiting in a few hours, I'm not surprised"

"It's not just that:" Morri stated, "He suspended Hailey and the twin's security clearance"

"What?" both father and son blinked in surprise simultaneously; "Why?" Ashley pressed her.

"That's-, where it gets _complicated_..." Morri winced slightly, wondering how best to explain this.

* * *

><p>Elsewhere, in the rec-room:<p>

The girls, plus their four guardians: stared at Darren in a mix of disbelief and perplexity.

"..._Their uncle?_" Roxy frowned at him, "You _seriously_ expect us to believe that the most powerful man in the western world: is the uncle of three NEST interns?!"

"Hey, it was news to me too, so don't go biting my head off, okay?" Darren sighed sarcastically. Having just explained what Hailey relayed to him, his head was still trying to process the revelation.

"How come she didn't say anything?" Chelsea asked offhand,

"No one asked, and she figured everyone already knew anyway" Darren waved off.

"Well I sure as hell didn't know!" Roxy huffed as she folded arms

Darren stared at her, gobsmacked: "_You didn't know?!..._" he stepped over to her, "The guy's been in the news for _weeks!_ He just won the vice-presidential election, and he was sworn in as president of the United States just last night! How the hell could you miss that?!"

"Well it's not like we've had much time to watch TV or YouTube: between trying to survive a shit load'a giant bugs, worrying about an amnesiac Decepticon who turned out _not _to be a con in the first place, and then finding out Morri was being picked on by a psycho-femme-harpy-bitch, and _nearly getting killed_ by said psycho-femme-harpy-bitch; I can't say I've really been paying attention to what's going on in the real world right now" Max stated sarcastically.

"I just figured he was _another_ Waineright: there's not much of a family resemblance between the girls and him anyway" Jeanie shrugged offhand.

"That's because I take more after my mom..." Hailey stated as she walked in with her sister's and parents close behind: "...My dad's good looks doesn't quite show up the same way". She stepped to one side, giving her parents some space to come forward, and introduced them as such: "Guy's, these are my parents. Mom, dad, this is Darren, and these are all his cousins, plus their guardians"

The atmosphere in the room suddenly shifted, as said parents stepped forward, and regarded the Autobots with discreet nods. And then regarded the girls with mixed looks: though the present concern was not to do with them, it was hard for them to hide their frustration and tenseness. "Uh, hello," Hailey's father greeted, wringing his hands nervously, "Nice to, finally meet you all".

"Uh?- Not wishing to sound rude or anythin', but why are your parents here?" Rosy asked.

"I asked dad to come: mom's on her day off and when dad told her 'uncle Lawrence' was paying a visit, she decided to come along too" Hailey explained,

"I still don't understand: _I get_ that the president is your uncle an' all, but I also get the feeling there's something else going on you're not telling us" Roxy pressed her bluntly; "...Look, if it's something that concerns NEST then we need to know if there's anything we should be prepared for..."

Hailey did not appreciate Roxy's tone, but didn't say anything as she regarded her with a disapproving frown. Glancing between one another with uncertainty, it was clear to see none of the Waineright's were comfortable with this. Clearly there was something no one wanted to touch upon: and as she watched her father begin to clam up and stiffen his posture: Hailey moved closer to him, so she could whisper discreetly next to his ear. "...Dad..., _please_...I don't know what else to do. _He's your brother_, you know him way better than I do..." she begged in a low, desperate voice. His wife came to his other side, and held his hand in her's, gently reassuring him with a soft yet firm grip. "Honey, I know this isn't easy, but _please_: this is for our girls"

"I know..." he nodded, "That's the whole reason we're here..."

As the Ainsley clan and their guardians watched in curiosity: the girl's father, noticed the audience around them, and after clearing his throat, addressed them in a tone that didn't seem to hint at any particular mood: "...I don't know what else my girls have told you, but as you are now aware of our, 'extended family'. I ask only that you be respectful; our _'family history'_ is not something we discuss outside of our home. And as such, I'd be very grateful if all of you _do not pry_ into this subject further. Understand?"

"...Understood" Darren respectfully nodded: and regarded his cousins with a stern mother hen look, "Right?"

The girls all reluctantly voiced their agreement, though that didn't halt their curiosity.

"Thank you...Uh? Is there somewhere we can talk in privet?" he asked discreetly,

"There's a small game's room over there" Darren pointed to said room at the far end of the rec-room.

"Thanks..." the girl's father replied politely, and walked over to the other side of the room with his family in tow: as she walked by him in silence, Hailey and Darren's eye's locked onto each other for about a tenth of a second; but in that fleeting moment, she looked like she wanted to say something, but didn't; out of fear? Respect for her father? Or something else? Darren couldn't tell, and for her sake, didn't ask.

As soon as the door to the games room shut, Roxy opened her mouth and inhaled sharply, but Darren stopped her in her tracks; "Before you say it, NO! Absolutely not! Whatever it is they got going on, it's none of our business! _Period!, _"

"Aw come on!" Lizzy waved off teasingly, "You're not even _the least_ bit curious?"

"No! And you shouldn't be either!" Darren stated sharply, before pressing his hand to his forehead and dragging it down over his face, sighing in mental exasperation: "...Look, girls: _this is not_ an episode of keeping up with the Kardashians, this isn't something for you to gawk at and gossip over; whatever it is they don't want to share, they must have a good reason for doing so"

"Like what?" Roxy frowned sarcastically

"I don't know, and I don't care!" Darren angrily bit back: "Look, some families are not comfortable with talking about their personal lives in front of strangers: for _whatever_ reason. They're not obliged to tell you everything they do behind closed doors!"

"Their uncle is the friggin' president of the USA, and he effectively _fired_ them from NEST: what the hell is up with that?!" Roxy exclaimed,

"_I don't know!_" Darren snapped, "But whatever it is, it's _nothing _to do with _us_. Butt out, and leave them alone!" he turned to leave, but something else got his goat, "And anyway, _why do you even care?_ You don't sit with Hailey and her sister's at breakfast, lunch or dinner, you don't volunteer to help them out with Jay-jay, and you _sure as hell_ don't hang out with them when they're off-duty...What have you done, in fact, what have _any_ of you done, that warrants your concern for them? ..."

The question took them all aback; Roxy looked away: not wanting to go on with this,

"...Why are you so angry about this?" Allie asked nervously.

"...Because they're not the only ones that don't like to talk about their personal lives with strangers..." Darren sighed bitterly: "You know, when I first started high school, and the principle asked me my name, he took one look at me and asked: 'Aren't you Roxy's cousin?'..."

The girls stared at him in surprise; Roxy in particular, was taken well and truly off guard.

"That pretty much set the tone, for the _whole time_ I was at high school. I may have been a freshman, but _every teacher_ remembered you, and the shit you use to pull on all the other kids. You have _no idea_ what it was like, carrying around the baggage of your legacy, and _me_ getting flack because we share the same last name. So yeah, you can forgive me for not wanting to make any friends: on account that every time someone seemed to take an interest in me, it was only to find out who you slept with, or if their brother's/cousins/best buds names were still in your little black book. To say I didn't like to talk about my family, is a _grave understatement_, and worse still, you had the _fucking audacity_ to fault yourself and your so-called 'victories' around half of Tranquility, and not giving a single shit about it, or what it would do to the rest of us!... Do you think it's _any wonder _Peter Woodrow had you down as a target? Why he pinned your face on his fucking wall? You may not have been asking for it, but you sure as hell could've fooled me!"..." he ranted, and stormed out of the rec-room. Trailbreaker, discreetly followed after him, being sure to keep a little distance from him; while the girls just sat/stood where they were, dumbfounded, surprised...and some, feeling bad.

Though Roxy's ego denied it: deep down, Darren's words made something hurt inside, and it wouldn't go away...

From where they stood, discreetly eavesdropping at the other entrance to the rec-room, Bumblebee and Jazz glanced at one another, and down at their charges with deep concern.

Deathshot shared the same quiet sentiment, as he silently slipped away from behind them: unseen and unheard. Spying on the enemy was one thing, but there was something about prying on his friends and acquaintances, he never found comfortable. Maybe that was just the gentlemech in him? Or he was just considerate like that; either way, this 'uneasiness' the Waineright's held over their extended family was confounding; and back there, for the briefest of moments: he noticed how Hailey's father tensed up when Max mentioned his brother, Lawrence. It wasn't fear he saw in his eyes; but there was _something_...something about his brother made him agitated, and anxious: more frustrated than anything else. Whatever it was, it had to be a very pressing reason; and part of him speculated, that maybe, at least a part of that reason, may be revealed when when Lawrence finally arrived here...

He was about to comm Morri to find out her location, when something else caught his audio. Just before he reached the intersection of the corridor, the sound of a muffled whispering voice could be heard echoing off the bare walls...

"I don't know! She's been with her mother all day, I can't even get close to her!" a voice angrily spat.

Stopping in his tracks, Deathshot's instincts as a sniper and a spy immediately kicked in, as he quietly closed his vents, offlined all non-essential systems, and stood as still and motionless as a statue: eliminating all the tiny little noises his huge form made inadvertently from his movements, and increased the omnidirectional range function on his audios: hoping to identify whoever it was around the corner...

"I know I know! _Don't tell me_ how to do my job!"

'_Shadowstar?'_ Deathshot frowned internally, _'What's she up to now?'_ concentrating as he listened in:

"Don't you think I know that?! They could be _anywhere_, and there's no point checking the logs they could've doctored them!"

'_No one else is there, she must be on her comm'_ he surmised. His scanners weren't picking any traces of anyone else in the corridor, so far as he could tell, she was alone: and it was too risky to try and hack the signal, either Shadowstar or whoever was listening on the other end, could hack him back...

"-_I don't care!_ It's not my fault she didn't have the brass bearings to kill Soundwave when she had the chance: if you wanted him dead so bad why didn't you just do it yourself?" she hissed.

Deathshot's pump nearly dropped: his curiosity flipped to serious concern, as he listened to the sphinx-drone continue her rant. "...*sigh* Fine, but if you get caught- ZZAK!

A flash of bright white light illuminated the corridor for a split second, followed by the smell of smoke and burnt circuitry. He could hear Shadowstar breathing hard and shaking, as if she were in pain... "...Y-y-yes..." she stuttered in a submissive pained voice. "...The president will be arriving in less than an hour: all the base's security will be focused on protecting him: I can-, _try_ then. But listen: this is _way too_ risky: can't we just wait until he's gone? ..."

Several seconds of silence passed, before Shadowstar gave her reply: "... Okay, I'll see what I can do; but I can't make any promises...She knows too much, and if she's already told her mother then we are _all in serious danger_"

Hearing her metallic paws pad away, Deathshot cautiously poked his head around the corner, and caught a glimpse of Shadowstar disappearing around the corner of the next intersection.

All at once his mind was buzzing with confusion and alarm: what the hell was Shadowstar involved in? And who was she talking to on the other end of her comm? If it were anything else he'd chock it up to one of her sour moods: but the mention of someone _attempting to kill_ Soundwave raised the bar considerably; this was now official Autobot business, and as such, he had to do something about it. But first things first: obtain enough evidence to present to Prime that would warrant further investigation.

On-lining his stealth-mode, the sniper disappeared from sight and engaged his tracking functions: he silently followed the direction Shadowstar took, and it didn't take him long to pick up her energon trail...

* * *

><p>Elsewhere, high up in the air over California:<p>

**: This is Air Force One requesting permission to land, over: **

**: This is NEST base, code 406: Air Force One you are cleared to land, over:**

**: Thank you NEST base, see you guys shortly:**

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, inside the base:<p>

"So this 'cyber-matter': it's only created when you mix energon with your blood?" Morri asked, as she walked side by side with her cousin down the corridor.

"Evidently" Ashley sighted with a concerned look, "And it's pretty potent: if two drops from an eye-dropper are enough to create cyber-matter the size of a beach-ball: it doesn't take a genius to work out what happens if you throw a few drops of my blood into a _whole cube_ of energon"

"And Que and Ratchet are worried that if the cons or Prometheus found out, that it could spell trouble?"

"Frankly, I don't know what believe? I mean, don't get me wrong: I get that there's danger attached to this, trusting the wrong people an' all that. But, I'm kinda starting to feel like a fifth wheel _and_ a Ming vase to boot. Ever since my 'new abilities' came about I've been hidden away from everyone bar you, dad, D, Tom and Danny, and maybe Optimus when he feels like paying me a visit. I hardly see anyone else anymore, even Sam and Mikaela don't come to see me anymore: and Ravage-...Well, given that whole thing with his dad, I can't blame him for wanting to be with him. But the long and short of it, I just-..."

"Feel frustrated?" Morri finished for him.

Passing a heavy sigh, Ashley stopped several feet short of a six-way intersection, and turned to face her: "... I know they're just being careful, but I can't help but think if everyone's starting to make too much of it? I mean, it's not like I don't know how to fight or stick up for myself, if that's what their worried about?"

Thinking about it for a moment, Morri's mind couldn't help but come back to Shadowstar's words:

_She's not the only one with secrets on this base_

"...I think..." she drew in breath, trying to think of the right words to say: "First off, it's better to be overcautious, than not cautious at all; and secondly. It's more complicated than just the cons or Prometheus ... This is something none of them have ever dealt with before, and I can see it's unnerved them somewhat: Prime, is just trying to figure out how best to handle this while taking everyone into account, including you... But, after what Barricade told Soundwave, he's been sort of, more 'on edge' than usual"

"I know, dad told me"

"Listen, just because your safety is a priority doesn't mean no one's allowed to come and visit you: everyone's keen to see how you're doing. They're just-, been preoccupied of late" she assured him.

"You know, I haven't even met Darren's cousins: or the VW sisters yet?" Ashley stated, "Not being able to eat with your friends and family at meal times is bad enough; but not being able to see new faces? That's bollocks"

"I know..." Morri sighed, unsure what else to offer him. Ashley opened his mouth in readiness to say something else, when a familiar voice made him stop:

"Where is it?!-"

Recognizing it was Majestrix, Morri blinked in surprise as she and Ashley both stood there, listening as she continued: "-She must've hidden it _somewhere!_"

"I've checked everywhere inside the base I could think of" another familiar voice replied in an anxious tone. "Eclipse?" Morri mouthed, but Ashley merely shrugged, unsure what was going on...

"-I even back-hacked the security logs, but there's no sign of any out-going encrypted signals: my only guess is, she must be using an old analog wired system to relay the orders" Eclipse said.

"...If that's true, then it explains how she was able to communicate with Longrange and Blackshot from inside their cells..." Majestrix speculated aloud.

Morri and Ashley both frowned at each other: what was going on? What were they talking about? Being careful to make as little noise as possible, they both stepped under one of the over-head walkways, and pressed their backs up against the wall, carefully maneuvering to get as close to the corner of the corridor as possible. It seemed neither of the femmes heard them, as they continued their anxious conversation. "Was there anything else she told you that may offer a clue as to where she's hiding it?" Majestrix added.

"No, I have _no idea_ where it could be: she only revealed what she intends to do with it, _not_ where she's hiding it" Eclipse replied: the frustration and anger in her voice wasn't hard to miss, "...What're we going to do? The human president arrives within the hour; his aircraft is coming into a holding pattern over the base as we speak: if we're going to have any chance of catching them off-guard, it would be while the president is inside the complex, and all security is focused on him"

"I know" Majestrix sighed bitterly, "And now that they know you've had a change of spark, they'll have relocated their regular rendezvous point..."

A moment of uneasy silence passed, before Majestrix asked in calmer voice: "...There's one thing you didn't tell me... Why didn't you kill Soundwave?"

Both cousins looked at one another in shock, as they strained their ears to listen more closely...

With much uncertainty and regret in her voice, Eclipse replied: "...I've been having my doubts for a long time now; ever since we awoke out of stasis and discovered that the war is now over: part of me didn't want to believe it, and I stubbornly tried to cling to that belief... But then, things changed: and I saw it was for real...I realized the plan was never going to work the way we envisioned it, and for a while I didn't know what to do...And then, Soundwave came into the picture: thinking that he'd telepathically find out what we were up to, she ordered me to kill him: but then he woke up, and-..._things changed_ _again_: the cerebro-shell was discovered, and he was never a Decepticon by choice... That-, _shattered_ _everything_ I had been told, everything I'd _believed to be true_; I thought-, she might realize the same, and call the whole thing off...But she didn't: she didn't-, _doesn't care_, she's carrying out the plan regardless of what's happened. As far as she's concerned, nothing has changed"

Hearing the sound of Majestrix's air intakes 'breathing': that low, almost growling sound they made when she was furious, the cousins heard her slowly step towards the corner they were hiding behind; for a split second both their stomachs dropped, as they realized she must've heard them. But at the last second she turned and paced back; an overwhelming wave of relief flushed through them, as they strained to hold back the sigh of relief that wanted to escape their lungs.

Keeping their focus as best they can, they listened as Majestrix spoke again: this time, in a bitter, almost resentful tone, "...Tell me this...did you _care_ for her, more than me?"

Another uneasy silence filled the corridor: this time, the tension was much more uncomfortable; and as Eclipse let a bitter sigh escape her vents, she approached her mother, and looked her in the optic: "...You know as well as I do, that our relationship as mother and daughter has never been straightforward: not least because, you _lost yourself_, for a time... During that period I wanted nothing more than to _spite_ you; for putting me and my sisters through all that. Once or twice I hoped things would get better: but as the war dragged on nothing seemed to change. If anything it only got worse: and I believed you were as much to blame as your twin brother... I felt like I had no one else to turn to, that I was the only one _still sane_, watching everything spin out of control; she was just-..._there_, and you were _not_..." Eclipse sobbed, as energon tears began to stream down her face: "I could _talk_ to her: be frank and tell her how I felt...and all the while, you wanted nothing but to see your brother _burn_...You didn't-, _I thought_ you didn't care about us, about me..."

Gazing at her daughter: and seeing the hurt in her optics; Majestrix laid one hand on her shoulder, and the other on her cheek, "...Was I truly _that _shallow?" she asked in a pained voice.

"It felt like it..." Eclipse stated as she wiped the tears from her optics, "...At least, that's what _she _convinced me of. There are things she said, far too numerous to recall now: but _I understand_, _why_, I didn't see this coming..."

"...I understand all that: and truly, there are no words; no amount of apologies that can take back all those years I neglected my duties as your mother. But you didn't answer my original question: if you were so committed to following this plan through, what changed? ..."

"..._She did_..." Eclipse admitted, "..._I thought_ I knew her: thought I knew what she wanted. Long ago, when we started this, our intentions were straight-forward: and we believed what we were doing was for _the right reasons_...But now? _I don't even know her anymore_; I thought she could be reasoned with, I thought she-..." Eclipse stepped back, and drew in a deep sigh, "...Look, I helped her start this; this is just as much my mess as it is her's. I know what I've done is wrong: I just want the chance to make things right, before it's too late"

"...You're not the only one to share the burden of this folly, my child" Majestrix forlornly sighed, "...I _knew_ the war had changed her, and I should've seen that the darkness and carnage had _poisoned_ her spark: but in the hopes that peace might temper her scorn, I neglected to remember, just how _manipulative_ she could be...All these years, _all these eons_ I knew what a turbo-viper she was, _but still_ I was careless and gullible enough to let her bite me again and again. For this and more I will pay a heavy price, I have no doubts about that. So I am hardly in any position to criticize you; when the fault was just as much mine to begin with"

Eclipse looked at her in surprise: "But-, _that wasn't your fault_..." she laid a hand on her mother's shoulder, "She _knew_ what Megatron did to you: she told me herself during the data-burst: it was the very reason she could manipulate you: just as she used my resentment and anger to have me believe that you didn't care about us... Mother, we're sentient beings, _we're not infallible_: yes we were taken advantage of, but that doesn't mean we have to stand around feeling sorry for each other"

Studying her daughter, and hearing the sense of optimism in her voice, a small smile tugged at the corner of Majestrix's lip-plates: "...It's nice to hear hope in your voice again"

"Actually? ..." Eclipse couldn't help but smile, "She wasn't the only reason I changed my mind about going through with the plan. A few days ago, a young, _wise_ human, gave me some much-needed council...She made me realize what's important"

"And, what is important?"

"...That-, ... Does it really matter? I'm sorry for what happened between us, and I'm grateful for what we have now" she smiled with heart-felt honesty in her voice.

Morri resisted the urge to gasp, as she recognized that line of context: deep down, something in her smiled, and a feeling of satisfied contentment lifted her spirit. It reflected in the small smile on her face; and the two femmes hugged one another, the atmosphere quickly swung back to where it had started.

"Listen, after what happened last night, she must know by now that I intend to stop her: it's likely she'll have moved up the plan and relocated the device" Eclipse stated seriously.

"Logically, it would be highly risky to attempt to implement the plan now: with the president about to step foot on the base Red Alert will be keeping the security tight. Nothing and no one will be able to get in or out" Majestrix reasoned.

"Not necessarily" Eclipse replied, "She overhauled the base's security systems, remember? It's _possible _she might have incorporated a device into the hardware to switch the camera feeds: I always wondered why Longrange and Coldbore were able to sneak around the base at night without engaging their stealth-modes: but now that I think about it, it's the only logical reason that makes sense"

"But if that's the case: and _all _the base's security cameras have been compromised-..." Majestrix paused as a look of horror began to come over her face.

"Mother?"

Majestrix grabbed her daughter by the shoulders and looked her dead in the optic: "Listen, there's something I need to confirm before we go any further with this: I'll come with you to the command center, and once there you are to shadow your uncle for the duration of the president's visit. _Do not leave his side, even for a second_; until I return, understand?"

"Yes, but-, Mother-"

"_Please Eclipse!_-, do this for me?" she begged desperately,

"...Okay, _but please_, don't take any unnecessary risks, until I've had a chance to tell Optimus about this"

"There will be time for that when the president finally leaves, but right now, there's something that cannot wait. I'll meet up with you as soon as I can, I promise" Majestrix stated, and together they turned to leave. Pacing off at a quick speed, they walked through the intersection and right past the humans, completely unaware they were standing just feet away from the corner. Once they were out of sight and out of earshot, both Morri and Ashley finally let out a sigh of relief: And glanced at each other.

"What the hell..." Ashley gasped in a daze, "_What was that_ all about?"

"I don't know..." Morri breathed; dazed and bewildered, that feeling in her gut returned with a vengeance: spurring her to follow after them, "But I've _got_ to know"

"Me too, I can easily catch them up" Ashley stated as he readied himself to transform into his hybrid form.

"No, you heard them: whatever it was, it sounded_ dead serious. _I'll tail Majestrix; you go and find your dad, Tom, Danny and D, and tell what we overheard, and if you can, find Sam and Darren too"

"What about Eclipse?"

"If she's going to be with Prime, she won't be hard to keep track of: It's Majestrix I'm more concerned about" Morri stated.

"What do you suppose is going on?"

"That's what we're going to find out" Morri stated as she started jogging off down the corridor the two femmes went down, "Go! I'll catch you up!" she called after him.

Without another word, Ashley transformed, and took off back the way he'd came: hoping to find his father where he'd left him.

Down the other end of one of the other corridors, unbeknown to either of them; Shadowstar had been spying on them: watching and listening as they eavesdropped on Majestrix's and Eclipse's conversation. Deciding to go after Morri, the sphinx-drone silently padded down the corridor: keeping her distance as she followed the sound of the human's soft foot-steps...

And some distance behind _her_, an invisible Deathshot silently stalked her movements: being careful not to follow so close that she could pick up his scent. Realizing she was now following someone, Deathshot's concern began to meld into worry. What was she up to? And who was she working with/for?

* * *

><p>Elsewhere on the base:<p>

"Status report" Optimus ordered

"We're good to go, all security checks are complete and confirmed: and the welcoming party is ready and on stand-by" Prowl reported

"Good. And just in time too..." Ironhide pointed to the monitor that showed the airfield. The huge blue and white Boeing VC-25 came into land, touching down flawlessly, and then taxied to a designated space in the airfield's apron. From there, the boarding stairs were moved into position in front of the forward passenger door, and the president, along with Galloway and several security personnel made their down to where Major Lennox and his men were waiting; following the protocols of military standard, the humans stood to attention in a long line as the president and the Major respectively exchanged greetings.

"So far so good" Bishop sighed with slight relief as he watched the monitor feed.

"Uh sir?" one of the techs grabbed his attention, "You've got a call from the Pentagon"

"Tell them I'm busy" he stated

"They say it's urgent: something about additional security measures?"

Glancing at the tech, then over at Optimus: Bishop passed a frustrated sigh, and paced over to his office: "Patch it through to my office" he ordered

"Cutting it rather fine for adding last-minute security measures?" Ironhide thought aloud

"Hmm..." Optimus nodded, he was about to say something, when the doors to the command center opened up, and Hailey walked in with her family by her side, with Bluestreak bringing up the rear.

"Optimus, we need to talk" she stated seriously.

At the same time, elsewhere:

_: How bad it is? :_ Silas demanded over the encrypted line.

"Bad," Arkeville huffed as he scratched the back of his neck anxiously, "The central complex is virtually all destroyed: we managed to salvage the cons and several other items, but the whole place is beyond repair; we've put code: scorched earth into effect and will be evacuating shortly"

_: Beller...:_ Silas fumed, _: I'll have his hide for this: _

"Circuit breaker beat you to it"

_: ...: _

"We figured out how he managed to bypass security: seems he stole one of our EMP injectors; half the cameras in the complex must've been compromised while he strolled through to the lab"

_: The fire must've been his doing too... : _Silas huffed in frustration, _: Where is she now? :_

"Making a bee-line for NEST, and _fast_; but there's one major problem. When Beller disconnected her, the control software wasn't re-initiated: she's on automated stand-by right now, but for some reason her device isn't responding to the stand-down order. She's effectively out of control!"

_: Is there anything you can do to get the device working correctly? :_

"We're doing everything we can as we speak: but Silas, that's not the worst of it. He disconnected her, _right before_ we were about to administer the new drugs. Right now, she's got enough of the previous dosage to keep her in check; but if we don't retrieve her within the next twelve hours, there's no telling what could happen!"

_: ...I'll try and do what I can from my end: but if the worst comes to worse: we may have to dispose of her. We can't risk having her fall into the Autobot's hands:_

"Understood"

_: I'll be running silent from now on; don't try to contact me no matter what happens, things are about to get very ugly here: _

* * *

><p>Back at NEST, a short while later:<p>

"And, you are a fully qualified medic?" the president regarded Mikaela with a mixed look

"Qualified _Autobot_ medic" Ratchet correct, "And for one so young, she's certainly been a better apprentice then some rookies I knew"

"But-, what if one of the _human _soldiers were to get injured?" the president asked

"Oh, I know human first aid too" Mikaela added, "Granted, my knowledge of human anatomy isn't as extensive, but thus far, no one's died on me yet" she sheepishly winced.

The president regarded her with an unreadable expression: which only served to pique her anxiety, was he okay with it? Or was he disappointed? His reply didn't help much either: "Well, that's good to know" he stated dryly.

"Uh, why don't we show you the command center? That's where all the real action takes place around here" Galloway suggested, as he led the way out of the med-bay. With the security detail, Lennox and a few of his men, and some of the Autobot officer's following closely by.

"You okay?" Sam discreetly asked as he laid a hand on her shoulder.

"That, was _awkward_" she sighed with relief: "Not much of a people person, is he?"

"I'll say" Sam concurred

"Mikaela, you're in charge 'till I get back" Ratchet stated as he left the med-bay. As he stepped through the door, he nearly tripped up on the human/cybertronian hybrid that came galloping in with Tom and Danny on his back. "Oh good you're here!" Ashley sighed with relief. "Ashley? What's wrong?" Mikaela frowned. "I need to borrow your boyfriend, and I need to find my dad: it's a bit of an emergency..."

Down the corridor, Galloway led the way with the president at his side.

"I have to say Mr Galloway, you weren't kidding about this place" the president sighed as he adjusted his tie

"I trust you weren't kidding about us too, Galloway?" Ultra Magnas dryly asked

"There was really no point" the president regarded him warily, "Look, as much as I appreciate the tour. There's a more pressing concern as to why I came here"

"We know" Ultra Magnas replied, "And their waiting for you in here..." he gestured to the entrance of the command center.

As they rounded the corner and spotted the president and his entourage: the Ainsley girls and their guardians silently crept up behind the bots, being careful not to get so close that they'd grab their notice. As the group entered the command center; they quickly snuck into the giant room, and discreetly hid away behind the larger of the platforms and mezzanines; out of the bots line of sight, and placed the girls up on the walk-ways where they could get a good view and see what was really going on. Down below, in the center of the room, the girls and femmes could see Hailey and her family standing by Optimus and Eclipse, with the president, looking rather surprised to see them.

"Jason? ..." the president blinked in surprise, a little taken aback to see his brother here, "Wha-...what're _you_ doing here?"

"I think you know the answer to that, _Lawrence_" Jason stated as he folded his arms, "I'm just surprised you didn't have the courtesy to call first"

"Look Jason, this doesn't concern you" Lawrence stated.

"You fired my daughters from their job for apparently no reason, _it is_ my concern" he frowned.

"And I want an explanation" Hailey stated, "_We all do_" the twins concurred.

As all eyes and optics around the room watched on, Lawrence suddenly felt like he was on the spot: and it was rather uncomfortable. "...Why don't we talk in privet?"

"Yes. Let's..." Jason concurred, as he led the way to the debriefing room at the far end of the command center. There, the Waineright's all stepped in, alone. When the door's shut behind them, Optimus and Eclipse both stood guard: and waited.

"What the hell was that all about?" Galloway asked Lennox

"Hell if I know?" Lennox shook his head

"...Still think we should be doing this?" Jeanie asked offhand

"Hell yeah!" Roxy frowned, regarding her with a rather 'are you kidding?' kind of look.

Glancing over at Allie, Max and Chelsea, who didn't seem to be okay with this either: Jeanie gestured that she was leaving, and the three followed after her, leaving Rosy, Roxy and Lizzie to eavesdrop on the situation.

"Where're you going?" Chelsea asked, "To find Darren, I need to talk to him" Jeanie replied as she discreetly made her way out of the command center.

* * *

><p>Elsewhere on the base:<p>

With security all focused on the president, it was little wonder that there was no guard posted outside the brig today. The thrum of the stasis field generators echoed off the empty concrete walls, and down the corridor.

As she sat on her berth, idly trailing her claw tips over the surface of her leg armor: Velocity suddenly sensed a presence, and as a smile creeped across her face, she thought she knew who it was...

"Back to try again?" she teased, "I thought we settled this last night, I won't give you the-

But when she turned to face the front of the cell, the smile dropped from her face and her pump nearly seized with dread: for instead of Blackshot, there stood Majestrix, with a look of pure death in her burning red optics.

"What? ..." she growled as she stepped closer to the cell, "...You won't give me, _what? ..._"

Suddenly realizing she let the cat out of the bag: Velocity began to panic, as she quickly tried to think of a way out of what was coming next...

* * *

><p>D8 Oh boy, this is already tense. Stay tuned, cuz it's about to get real thunder-dome kinda serious here.<p>

Hope you enjoyed, as always :) & don't forget to R&R before clicking off!


	4. Chpt 3: Developments

Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers: just my OC's & the plot.

* * *

><p><span>SMALL MERCIES<span>

Chapter 3: Developments

"He can't have gone far, he knows he's still on duty" Jeanie muttered to herself as she paced down the corridor, and turned a corner.

"There he is..." Chelsea pointed ahead. There, parked in his altmode beside one of the staircases leading up to the suspended walkways, Trailbreaker sat patiently; as he detected the girls approach, he flashed his indicators three times, signalling them to look up. Sitting on the third level walkway, with his legs hanging off the edge through the railing bars while he laid flat on the metal platform: Darren stared aimlessly up at the bare ceiling, trying to get lost in thought.

Glancing at one another in uncertainty, the girl's then tentatively made their way up the staircase. Max, Chelsea and Allie stopped at the second level, while Jeanie carried on up, and sat down on the last step: barely a meter away from her cousin. Glancing over at him, she saw the frustration had left him: but there was still that bland look on his face, as though he were dead to the world, (or trying to be, at least).

"You know? You're not the only one who's had to put up with her all these years" Jeanie said offhand: hoping to pick up where Darren had left them in the rec-room.

"...I know..." he sighed in regret, "...I'm sorry about-, you know" he lazily glanced over at her.

"I know" She smiled weakly,

"It's just- ... _How do you do it?_ How are you able to take everything she say's and just be cool with it?"

"The truth is? I don't..." Jeanie confessed, Darren blinked in surprise, and sat upright to face her properly; "Okay, now you're shitting me" he sarcastically retorted.

"I really don't!" Jeanie retorted, "She bugs me as much as she does you and everyone else: and I'd be lying if I said we didn't get into fights over the things she say's every once in a while..." she paused to catch her breath, and continuing in a more measured tone, adding: "...But she's my _sister_: regardless of whatever goes down, I'd still be there for her. And I know she'd do the same for me too"

Darren looked at her blankly, and turned away to stare at the opposite wall of the corridor: "...I don't know, if she'd reciprocate the feeling," he replied with an air of bitterness: "All my life: all I've ever known Roxy to be, is a lying, selfish, unprincipled bully. Who cares for no one but herself...The fact we're cousins doesn't mean I trust her, and the fact she went to help save Max that night up in the Tranquility national park doesn't mean I forgive her..."

"But, what about when she got kidnapped by the Insecticons? Doesn't what happened between her and Morri up on that mountain count for anything?" Jeanie pressed him.

"...If it did, she's not proving it now..." Darren frowned,

Thinking back to what he said before, Jeanie asked: "...Was it really _that _bad in high school?"

For a brief moment, Darren regarded her with a mild look of spite: the bitterness in his eyes almost made her flinch, until a look of hurt came over him, and he dropped his gaze as he stared at the floor below. "... You don't have to shove someone's head down a toilet, or call them names to their face to hurt them. Talking behind their back can be just as hurtful, especially when it's the people you're supposed to look up to"

"...Ramirez?" Jeanie asked offhand; Darren's head snapped round and stared at her in disbelief. "...The short lady, the one who used to teach math? Always wore that skirt with the roses on?"

"...You had her too?" he blinked in surprise,

"Yeah, and it wasn't just _your _balls she used to bust over Roxy's bullshit: so don't go thinking _you're_ the only who had a hard time" Jeanie stated:

"...Why didn't you tell me?" Darren pressed her.

"...Honestly?" Jeanie thought about it, "_I didn't know_ she still worked at that school when you went there; and, even if I had known sooner: I don't know if you'd have really listened me?"

"..."

"Look, back then, before-, all_ this_" she waved her hands around, trying to gesture to the entire base; "...You were a very different kid; you were _always_ angry at the world: reclusive, stubborn: and you _didn't care_ about a lot of things, family being chief amongst them... Being part of a family like ours isn't easy, _I know_, I've lived it every day of my life since I was born; but despite all the bullshit we throw at one another, we still gravitate back together again. I mean come on, who else knows how the cut the crust's off Violet's sandwiches? Or let Lizzy have the pixie sticks every Halloween? Or let Rosy have the last cookie in the jar? It's the little things, you know? And, it's not _all_ bad all the time, it just-, takes _patience_, and a lot of tact ..."

"...I hear what you're saying" Darren sighed, "And, yeah: _I get_ all that; I just- ...She makes it _so damn hard_"

"You don't make it easy for her too you know?" Jeanie pointed out, "Like I said: You were a very different kid; in the two years between now and then you've changed a lot. And, what happened when we accidentally discovered this place, kinda took us _way _off guard. All that time we thought you were at some fancy prep school, but instead here you are, working with the government and a bunch of alien robots trying to keep the world in check. Roxy didn't know how to handle that, she _still _doesn't know how to handle it: and in the face of facing the unknown she did what she always does; carry on as usual and pretend she knows what she's doing..."

"But she's _got_ to know she's not doing herself any favors by being an ass to everyone: that's not how it works in the real world, and that's not how it works here" Darren retorted.

"_Of course_ she knows, she may be blond but she's not stupid"

"Could've fool me" Max casually threw in,

Ignoring her, Jeanie continued: "...You know, you're right, Roxy hasn't done much to endear herself to everyone here: but I can't say _you've_ done much to be nice to her either"

Darren stared at her, surprised.

"Bringing us to this place and keeping us here may have put some things into perspective for her: and yeah, she _did_ learn a thing or two; but that's about as far as you went. Hoping that she'd be smart enough to shape up on her own... Look, _I get_ that you're angry at her, and have been for a very long time: but you can't let past grudges get in the way of right now. It's not a question of shaping up: it's about trying to accept each other as you are. And that-, _doesn't come easy_ for Roxy...She likes to be in control, and in this place she's _way_ out of her comfort zone: that's a _scary_ thing for her, and when she's scared she puts on her bad-ass bitch routine and picks on everyone in sight; she doesn't do it for kicks, she does it because she wants to maintain her comfort zone...And you-, kinda took that away from her" she explained tentatively.

Astounded by this revelation, Darren didn't know how to process this; "...Why didn't she just tell me?" he said offhand,

Jeanie passed a small chuckle, and smiled: "Come on, when have you ever known Roxy to get all emotional?"

"Good point" Darren smirked,

"Listen, you may not believe this, but you and Roxy are more alike than you both care to think: you're _both_ passionate people, and passionate people have a tendency to let their emotions do the thinking for them. Neither of you are bad; you're just-, prone to being too much alike more often than not. It doesn't mean you can't get along: and it sure as hell doesn't mean you can't move forward...Years back, when I was still in high school, Miss Ramirez told me, 'be thankful for small mercies'. I didn't know what she meant by that; but after everything we've been through since joining NEST, I kinda understand it now...There's no one perfect way to be a sister (or cousin): but there are a million little ways, to be a good one. You don't have to see eye to eye on everything, you just gotta respect each other enough to be willing to listen to each other, when it really matters"

Thinking about it, Darren admitted: "...I can't promise anything"

Jeanie laid a hand on his shoulder: "I'm not asking you to make a promise: I'm just asking that you'll _try_. And don't worry if Roxy's not willing to try, _that's not your problem_: okay?"

Laying his hand on her's, he passed a short sharp sigh, and got up back onto his feet. "...Guess I should be getting back to work; Red'll give me an earful if I don't triple-check the firewalls and anti-malware buffers" he turned to leave, but stopped as something came to mind. "...I'll-...I'll talk to Roxy later; after the president leaves"

Satisfied her pep-talk had brought about the desired results: Jeanie didn't take the subject any further, and simply followed Darren as he made his way down the stairs to the ground floor. "...You know? I never figured you for being a wannabe Dr Phil?" Max thought aloud.

Jeanie couldn't help but smirk: "Not quite; forensic psychiatry's more my thing"

"Forensic psychiatry?" Chelsea raised an eyebrow, "You mean like, FBI criminal profiling and all that shit?"

"I thought you wanted to be a writer?" Darren blinked in surprise.

"I do: but forensic psychiatry is so fascinating to read, and to write about. I like to think if things had been different, I'd make a go of studying for it and becoming a real psychiatrist"

"Then why didn't you?" Max asked

"Eh: if I had to be brutally honest? I'm way too much of a free spirit to make _that_ kinda academic commitment, plus, with college and university tuition fees being what they are, and my current financial status; it's not really doable. Besides, there're _tons _of medical text books on the subject out there. It's easier to just read up on the essential stuff and go out to the park and practice people watching. (That and, criminal minds is pretty awesome)"

"Not that I'm an expert or anything? But I don't think a TV crime drama about FBI profilers counts" Darren pointed out dryly.

"In any case, I just find it fascinating" Jeanie shrugged, and thought nothing more of it.

As they reached the ground level, Trailbreaker discreetly rolled around to his charge's side: "...Okay?" he asked through his speakers; "I'm good" Darren smiled, placing a reassuring hand on his wing mirror: "Come on, I'll need to sneak back into the command center, and make sure Red doesn't spot me"

"Done..." Trailbreaker smirked as he opened his doors for them; Darren took his usual place behind the wheel, and together they sped off the short distance back to the command center. After letting the youngsters out, Trailbreaker transformed, and went to open the doors. "Hopefully, he'll be too busy to notice us" he thought aloud in a hushed voice.

"_Hopefully_" Darren emphasized as he got up close to the right side of his guardian's feet. Max, Chelsea and Allie followed suit as they flanked their cousin's side. The doors slid open: and fortunately Red Alert was, indeed, too wrapped up in his work to notice them. Moving at a quick yet soft pace, the five of them slipped in and moved off to one side out of the way...

But it was only when they were in the middle of the command center, that they saw the scene was much different to what they were expecting. Near the debriefing room, the president's security detail were standing at the ready: Galloway and Lennox were standing off to one side, not making eye contact, and both looking very reluctant and uncomfortable to be in each others company, while Lennox's men plus John and the Royal marines stood aside in equal restlessness, as if waiting for something to happen. And standing right in front of the doors to the debriefing room, Optimus and Eclipse stood like a couple of Buckingham Place guards, unmoving and to attention: their stern gazes telling any would-be eavesdroppers to move on. (Though, they seemed unaware of Roxy, Rosy and Lizzy up on the top-most walkway, along with Bluebird, Veebee, Firefly and Tangostar standing beneath one of the larger mezzanines, out of Eclipse's line of sight).

All around the vast room, the usual ambient sounds were the quietest they had ever been: everyone was busy working, but for some reason, there wasn't the usual banter or chatter. The hum and beeps of the computer systems could be heard echoing off the walls, and even the internal mechanisms of some of the larger bots could be faintly heard clicking, whirring and creaking. Looking around, the five friends were a little perplexed if not unnerved by the this abrupt change in the atmosphere: deciding to get answers, Darren strolled over to Lennox, being careful not to grab Galloway's attention, as he idly paced out into the center of the room.

"Hey Will, what's up?" he asked in a hushed tone behind the major's back.

Glancing over his shoulder at the teen hacker, Lennox took a deep breath in an effort to ease his tenseness: being thankful it was someone he could be frank with: "They've been in there nearly ten minutes now"

"Who?"

"Hailey? Her sisters, plus their folks and the president"

"I know this goes without saying: but, any idea what their talking about?"

"Not a clue..." Will sighed, "But whatever it is, it's getting pretty contentious"

Darren was about to ask what he meant by that, when the sounds of raised voices could be heard coming from within the debriefing room. He could hear Hailey, her sisters, their father, their mother: and who, he assumed to be the president. The doors armor plating was thick, and therefore the sound was too muffled to make out what they were saying exactly, but whatever was being said: it was clear they were getting very riled about something.

As he tried to ignore the growing tenseness of the situation: Optimus was disturbed from his concentration as Eclipse opened her comm-line to his, **: I wanted to apologize on mother's behalf, for being so vague earlier: **

**: What is going on? : **He pressed her, **: First, you both disappear all morning, and then you request to shadow me for the remainder of the day? There had better be a good explanation for this erratic behavior: **

**: There is, but I can't talk about it now: **

Optimus frowned as he glanced over at her,** : ...Is there something I should know?: **

Glancing over at her uncle, Eclipse was unable to hide the fear in her optics, **: ...Something-, important:** was all she said...

Optimus was about to press her, when suddenly the doors behind them opened up, and President Lawrence Waineright stormed out, clearly agitated and provoked. His brother followed out after him, with Hailey at his side: both looking equally angry.

"_For god's sake_ Lawrence! Will you just listen to me for _one minute!_-"

"This discussion is over," Lawrence stated, his tone making it clear he wasn't taking this any further; "I've explained why you can't stay here: why can't you understand that?"

"_Because it's shit!_" Hailey angrily retorted: "I told you, _I made this commitment_, I have responsibilities, and the people here count on me to have their back. If I dumped them for the sake of _your_ family's political agenda, what the hell does that say about me?!"

"Us too!" the twins concurred as they stormed out of the room, "-Okay we're not old enough to be interns (yet), but still! We got responsibilities too you know!" Becca fumed: "We always back up our big sister, regardless of whatever shit goes down: and you can't tell us what to do! We take our orders from the bug guy there!" Becky pointed at Optimus: who merely acknowledged the president with an uncertain gaze.

"_Why the hell_ are you kicking up such a fuss over this?" Jason huffed in exasperation: the man was just about at the end of his tether with his brother, but he had just enough patience left to add; "It's not like mom, or dad or anyone else knows about NEST? And anyway, who the hell's gonna find out? There are like, _three hundred_ American spy satellites up in orbit over north America-

"Three hundred _and ten_" Red Alert discreetly interjected,

-And a _whole battery_ of super-computers that could run rings around the Silicon Valley! _Plus_ a battalion of giant alien robots who're armed to the teeth with technology, that's the stuff of every tech-analyst's wet-dream! If so much as _a flea_ comes within a hundred miles of this place I'm pretty sure these guys would know about it!"

"Not to brag or anything? But he pretty much nailed it" Red Alert smiled smugly.

Between his brother and nieces: Lawrence knew he was losing ground with this, and he knew he wouldn't be able to keep up the pretense forever; deciding to play the odds, he changed his tactics a little: "...Look, Jason...I have no doubt that this is the safest place in the northern hemisphere, if not _the entire planet_; but it's not just the girls I'm concerned about-

"_-Concerned_? ..." Hailey exclaimed, "I met you _only once_ when I was like, twelve? That was the only time I ever saw you in _my whole life!_ And then suddenly, outta the blue, you show up here, and tell me that _I'm fired from my job_, because I'm the niece of the president of the USA, and my being involved in a black-ops unit with extra-terrestrial beings is too much of a political liability if someone were to go digging into your past? That's your idea of being concerned for me?! For my sisters? ...You know, dad warned me that his whole side of the family were fucked up, _but god!_ You're unbelievable!" she ranted.

"...Fucked up?" Lawrence glanced over at Jason in astonishment, "...So this is what we've been reduced to now, is it?" he threw up his hands and stepped in front of his brother: his security guards discreetly moved to within close range of him, but kept their distance as Lawrence continued: "You know, you denouncing mother is one thing, and I can't blame you on _that_ front: but you wanna go the whole hog and shun the rest of us? Why?"

"You know _damn well_ why..." Jason stepped closer, bristling as his voice betrayed his rising temper, "_All our lives_, you've know why: and you have _the audacity_ to paint me as the bad guy in all this!? You know, if it were anything else I'd write this off as one of your typical 'over-reactions'. But this?! This is taking it too far Lawrence! The whole reason me and Beverly moved out here to California was so we _didn't have be involved_ with the family, to not have to live in your mother's shadow all the time, _for the rest of our damn lives!_ ...And it wasn't just _her_ you know? You wanting to try for the vice-presidency, dad running the company: you _all_ had an agenda: an agenda _I _didn't want to factor my family into. So we got outta the way, _and gladly!_ ...How does being the president of the US change all that?"

"It changes everything" Lawrence sighed in exasperation,

"HOW!?" Jason angrily pleaded, "What is the threat here?! What are you trying to gain from this?!"

"Nothing!-"

"-_Then why are you here?!_ Why come all the way out here for this?!"

As they watched and listened to the two brothers argue: both the bots and the humans were now quite perplexed as to what this was really about; and Lawrence in particular, was a real curiosity. His expression, though clam and relatively collected, seemed to hint at a man that was growing desperate to try and reach a particular desired outcome. Or was it something more than that? He hadn't given enough away for anyone to make an educated guess as to what the subject of their argument was about, and it seemed (judging by his measured demeanor) he was playing his cards close to the chest with his brother. With the optic of a well-trained tactician, Optimus watched the two humans carefully, as Jason's wife interjected...

"Perhaps we all need to take a time out?" she suggested, turning her attention to her brother-in-law: "...Look, you flew a long way to come here, so I highly doubt you'll be leaving within the hour; just go to the rec-room, have a coffee, and just take some time to reconsider this"

"As generous as your offer sounds Beverly. There's nothing to reconsider here" Lawrence stated, sticking to his guns: "The girls can't stay at NEST-

"WE HAVE NAMES YOU KNOW!" the twins angrily exclaimed,

"..._Hailey, Becca and Becky,_" he corrected, "Can't remain here: and neither can the two of you. When this is over, you are _all_ getting on that plane, and accompanying me back to Washington"

"What?!" Bluestreak exclaimed,

"See, this is _also _why we can't leave!" Becca gestured to her guardian: "who's gonna look after Blue?!"

"I'm sorry, but _what?!_" Darren exclaimed in equal shock.

Glancing over at him, Hailey huffed in frustration as she folded her arms, and explained sarcastically: "...He wants us to leave home and go with him to Washington so he can 'keep us safe' (whatever the hell that's supposed to entail?) It's bad enough I'm an intern for this black-ops outfit: apparently, all the president's known family have to be accounted for, and being on a security check list isn't good enough for 'uncle Lawrence' here"

"But-, what about Jay-jay? What'll happen to her if you're gone?" Trailbreaker exclaimed,

"Who's Jay-jay?" Lawrence frowned in confusion.

"My ward!" Hailey glared daggers at her uncle, "And the day I abandon _her_ is the day hell freezes over!"

"I'm sure whoever (or whatever) Jay-jay is, she'll be perfectly fine without you" Lawrence stated,

"Like hell she will!-

-*Ahem!* Colonel Bishop cleared his throat, grabbing everyone's attention. "Far be it for me to interrupt this 'family reunion': I believe it may be prudent to take Mrs Waineright up on that time out..." he stated as he came down the stairs to the ground floor.

"Took you long enough" John huffed discreetly, "I take it that 'security matter' has been sorted out?"

"Quite, there shouldn't be any more interruptions..." Bishop whispered over his shoulder as he passed by the Royal marine, and approached the Waineright's; "Please excuse my tardiness Mr President, but I don't like to leave urgent matters hanging around unsorted"

"You must be the base commander, Colonel Bishop"

"A pleasure sir: and any other time I would observe the usual pleasantries... " The colonel tipped his head in a discreet nod, "But I'm afraid I must protest at the reason for your being here. If I may be frank sir, I do not appreciate the commander in chief firing three of my best operatives, for seemingly trivial political matters"

Galloway looked like he was about to blow a gasket, but Lawrence remained calm and collected: "...Well? I have to say Colonel, that's- not quiet what I was expecting from you"

"On the contrary sir: if the girls were not able to live up to the high standards I set for this base, I would've seen them out the door personally. But this is NEST, as far as the world is concerned we do not exist, and likewise the politics of the country you now run, do not apply to us in the same way they apply to everyone else. That being said: while I respect your authority and the power of the office you now serve, I must respect my unit, and the team we have in place here. Hailey, Becca and Becky are key element of that team: and I would be most loathed to part with such valuable assets"

The president, unusually, seemed to be okay with Bishop's blunt approach. While it wasn't everyone's ideal way to approach the commander in chief, Bishop remained firm and unwavering, and he gestured for the president to follow him. "...How about we discuss this in detail, up in my office? And let the rest of your family take a break?"

Glancing over at his brother and nieces: no one voiced any objections as Lawrence took Bishop up on his offer; "Very well: Galloway, wait for me here while I see to this"

"Sure thing sir" the bureaucrat nodded, though secretly he would give anything to be a fly on the wall in Bishop's office. As the two gentlemen headed up to the office on the top-most platform of the suspended walkways, the Waineright's tension seemed to ease a little: but their guard hadn't dropped, as they all remained both anxious and worried. Unable to stand this any longer, Hailey stormed out of the command center. Jason and her sisters were about to go after her, when Beverly stopped them: "No don't-, just let her have some space..." she pleaded. Unsure what else to do, they all left the command center, with a very worried Bluestreak following after them: and a very confused eavesdropping audience all around them...

Scampering down the outside of the walkway staircase like a chipmunk, and then dropping the last four meters to the floor; Lizzy discreetly snuck over to her guardian's side, and climbed up onto Firefly's shoulder. "Okay, what the hell just happened?!" she hissed, praying Eclipse wouldn't notice her.

"I think the dude wants her and her folks to pitch up and move in with him?" Firefly shrugged.

"He wants the girls and their creators to move to Washington so he can place them into 'protective custody'" Bluebird corrected.

"What? Why?"

"Good question" Darren interjected,

"Wha-, how did you-..." Bluebird did a double take: how did he sneak up on her like that? One minute he was out in the middle of the room, the next, he's right up alongside her and her sisters; "Never mind; this whole thing doesn't make any sense? What makes him think they'll be safe in Washington, when we've got a base full of bots right here?"

"One possibility could be: he's worried about a potential scandal" Darren hypothesized, "If the press or one of his political opponents found out about Hailey's connection to NEST: that would create all sorts of problems. But given the procedures the Pentagon has for dealing with the press and social media: that's _very_ highly unlikely"

"But if that's unlikely to be the case, what else is getting the dude so riled up?" Tangostar thought aloud.

"I don't know... But now that I think about it: why would the president, who's barely been in office twenty four hours, suddenly go out of his way to come to a top secret military outfit to tell his nieces to quit, because he's worried of a possible intelligence leak?" Darren frowned as the cogs in his mind began to turn, "...Something's off about this"

"_You think?_" Max raised an eyebrow: "I've heard of people making a whole load-a fuss over nothing, but this is way outta proportion. There's something the president isn't telling his family, and I bet you an intelligence leak has nothing to do with it"

"Not to mention-" Lizzy added as she jumped to the floor. "The dude is threatening to take Hailey and her peeps away from here: from you guys, from Jay-jay. Look, I'm not into all that sappy stuff, but even _I _couldn't bear to see the look on that lil' cutie's face when she finds out her _foster mom _had the leave her: and what about Blue? I don't think he could have anyone else behind his wheel. We're just gonna stand by and let that happen?"

As he stood there thinking about it, Darren was already trying to figure out a way to stall the president long enough for this to be resolved: and with that stubborn sideways look of his (reluctant to say to his cousin's face that she had a point), he discreetly signaled for them to follow him. "...I don't know how we're going to do this, but we're not going to have a lot of time to do it in"

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, at the same time elsewhere on the base:<p>

At this point, she didn't know what to think. The only thought on her mind, was what the hell was going on?

After trailing Majestrix to the brig, Morri was certain that Velocity had a connection to this mystery: as she had heard Majestrix talking with her; but she hadn't heard what was said. For fear of the Prima or prisoner spotting her, she'd kept her distance, and tried to listen in as best she could. But to no avail: the distance was simply too great for her to hear anything clearly, and once Majestrix had left the brig and was some way down the corridor, Morri resumed her tail. Being careful to follow the Prima by the sounds of her footsteps: and to time her own footfalls so that the Prima's large footsteps would cover the sound of her own; as she tracked her through the labyrinth of corridors and wide passageways.

They had traveled some distance, as they were now in the empty sectors of the base: where some of the largest, widest and tallest rooms and hangers were situated. Back in the days of the cold war, when the facility was on stand-by for the outbreak of WWIII: this was the part of the base that would've served as an underground city, for hundreds if not thousands of civilians. There was so much space down here, that neither the Autobots nor NEST could figure out what to do with it all: and so, with the acceptation for some of their much larger vehicles and weapons, the rest of the lower level was left to gather dust, until such a time the need for such free space would be required.

Down here, not a soul or spark was anywhere to be seen. No one came down here, if at all? There were no suspended walkways lining the walls and ceiling, no alcoves in the walls for any humans to get out of the way of some lager bot's feet: there wasn't enough activity down here to warrant them; which made Morri all the more anxious, as she followed Majestrix, deeper, and deeper into this proverbial underground no-man's land. But that wasn't the worst of it: down here, the bare concrete walls and ceilings, that towered as much as over a hundred and ten feet in some areas, meant that sound carried for hundreds, if not tens of hundreds of meters in any given direction.

As such, Majestrix paced along at a much steadier speed, carefully placing each footstep, as though she were stalking prey. Ergo, Morri had to slow right down, steady her breathing to quieten each breath she took, and creep along more quietly than her quarry: all the while keeping her distance, so she remained out of the Prima's immediate audio range. At this point, Morri couldn't be sure if this was going to yield anything, or worse, if Majestrix had already spotted her, and was leading her down here to confront her about it. How would she explain it? These and other questions were buzzing through her mind with such dread, that she almost hadn't noticed that Majestrix had stopped...

Freezing as still as a statue, and even holding her breath, Morri watched with a cold knot in her stomach as the Prima stood still; she was barely three hundred and fifty yards away: at this range, even a exhaling breath, no matter how soft, would give her away. The characteristic red flash from her optic scanners swept over the doors of one particularly large hanger and its surrounding walls. Seemingly satisfied that there were no obstacles to contend with, the Prima relaxed her posture, and approached the doors: prying them open with hardly any effort. But when she looked inside, her expression turned to one of disappointment and frustration.

"Where did she put it?" she muttered to herself, as she scanned the hanger interior.

Clearly there had been something in that hanger, that wasn't there now, but what? The urgency of the situation gave Morri more reason to worry: but the knot in her stomach tightened when she heard footsteps and voices approaching from the opposite direction. Majestrix heard them too, as she swiftly stepped into the hanger, and moved to one of the far corners of the interior. All the while, oblivious to her human shadow...

With panic beginning to creep in and her adrenaline spiking: Morri quickly, but quietly, crept into the adjacent hanger on the opposite side of the corridor. The doors on this hanger were all but closed, with a small gap just big enough for her to squeeze through; and just in time, as the voices drew nearer, heading in their general direction...

In her hiding place, Majestrix stood still and silent, but with her weapons systems on standby. While all Morri could do, was ready her CTG's laser blaster, in case the worst case scenario should transpire...

As the voices drew closer, they heard it was three of them: Coldbore, Longrange and... Blackshot?

Majestrix's frown soured into a scowl, but Morri was flabbergasted: what on earth was Blackshot doing, talking to the two wayward snipers? And what were they doing down here? They were supposed to be on the level above, working in the garbage disposal plant; supervised by-

'_Blackshot'_ Morri suddenly remembered, as she recalled reading through today's duty roster, only last night. Blackshot was down for being their supervisor for the whole week. _'That would explain the absence, if she's the one in charge of them'_

But from the overall tone of the conversation, it didn't sound like that of a couple of prisoners conversing with their guard. As the three flyers turned down the corridor, both human and Prima could hear what was being said...

"-Of all the times to betray me she chooses _now_ to grow a conscience?" Blackshot scowled angrily; "I don't care what has to be done, we need to find her and her mother, and _stop them_ before they have a chance to find us"

"Eclipse is shadowing her uncle, but Majestrix has already docketed Red Alert's personnel tracking system: she could be anywhere in the base," Coldbore coolly replied: "She's going to be the trickiest of them all to deal with: if Eclipse divulged everything to her, then it'll only be a matter of time before the plan is exposed"

"We moved the device to the new location as specified, but we won't be able to keep it there for long; if we can keep it on the move we may have a chance, if nothing else to at least bide some time until the human president is gone..." Longrange added, stopping just short of the hanger Majestrix was hiding in. As the other two stopped and turned to face him: Morri nearly jumped out of her skin as she heard Blackshot's tail fin lightly brushed up against the door she was hiding behind; she was practically right behind the femme, with only two inches of steel between them, but managed to remain silent as she heard Longrange ask: "Look, why don't we just enact the plan now? It's not going to matter if the human president is here of not: we've breached Teletran's security protocols, we can go through with this any time we please; why the wait?"

"Because this isn't about making a statement to the humans," Blackshot bitterly scowled, "This is about setting a new precedence for the Autobot cause: reminding them of what our _true priorities_ should've been all along. And having the humans involved in any capacity will only have them believe that the coup is directed at _them_,"

'_A Coup?!'_ Morri's brain nearly did a full one eighty: but she bit back the urge to gasp, as she continued to listen in shock...

"For now, our top priority is to keep the device safe: if Majestrix is looking for it, then it'll only be a matter of time before she catches up to us" Blackshot stated,

"How will you handle her?" Coldbore asked,

"I'll see to her _personally_" the femme scowled,

"And what about Eclipse?" Longrange asked,

"Forget her for now; once we've overthrown the base I'll deal with her then" Blackshot stated: she was about to add something else, when her comm beeped; there was a brief moment of silence, and then the direction of the conversation swiftly changed...

"...What's wrong?" Coldbore asked her,

"Change of plans: wherever you've hidden the device, you need to get it back into the base, _right now_"

"Why? What's going on?" Longrange pressed her.

"Our 'look-out' has spotted an unknown object approaching the base fast, and from the readings he's getting it's putting out a lot of energy"

"Decepticons?" Coldbore asked

"No, apparently it's much too small. Whatever it is, it could set off the device prematurely; get it back inside and keep it safe, or at the least, get it somewhere it can be isolated. I need to get back into the system and make sure all the 'back-door' connections to Teletran are secure..." she added, before activating her comm "Which reminds me...**: Shadowstar, do you copy?:**

**: I copy:** the sphinx-drone replied,

**: Status report: have you located Majestrix? :**

**: Not yet, she's disappeared: and it looks like no one else has seen her all morning: **

**: Well keep looking; at the very least you can try to track her scent: **the femme scowled angrily as she flipped her comm off. "Come on, we've got work to do" she stated: and together they turned, and went back the way they'd came...

Peering out from her hiding place: Majestrix scowled as she stealthily stalked after her SIC: after she had gone, Morri chanced a cautious glance around the door, and breathed a soft sigh of relief. But she suddenly remembered Majestrix's interest in the hanger: and so treading softly over to the hanger, remaining alert and silent; Morri approached the doors, and stepped inside...

The hanger was completely empty, nothing but dust on the dark concrete floor, and cobwebs hanging from the high ceiling...

The dust on the floor

Morri almost missed it, had she not glanced straight down at her feet. For there, about a meter in front of her: a series of scuff marks could be clearly seen in the dust, along with multiple sets of footprints: bot-sized footprints. Something had been moved in and out of here recently, and had Morri not ventured further into the hanger for a closer look, she would've also have missed the strange large triangular marks, the ones that didn't looked scuffed, and seemed to suggest that something had been standing in here. Going around the vast room, she counted another two of the same size and shape; all three marks were approximately forty feet apart, and all situated in a near-perfect triangle.

'_A tripod?'_ she assumed. But if it was a tripod, what had it been holding upright? And just how big was it? Activating her CTG's scanner, Morri scanned the floor to see if there might be any residual energies or chemical residues: and sure enough, she got a hit; but as the data scrolled across the holoform monitor, she struggled the make sense of the readings.

'_What on earth puts out this much energon?'_ she thought in bemusement.

Outside the hanger, completely oblivious to the human: Shadowstar stood watching the hanger. Having stalked Morri all the way down here, and then stopped short of her position when she heard Blackshot and the snipers approaching: she'd been listening in the whole time. But then, quite unexpectedly, she turned, and trotted off back the way she'd came...

When the sphinx-drone was some distance from the hanger: Deathshot disengaged his stealth-mode, and stood there for a moment in shock, as his mind tried to comprehend all that he had just overheard. A coup? Here on the base? No way was this possible? And what was the device they were talking about? For the first time in a long time, his pump seized up as dread began to filter through his mind: and as the possibilities of what might happen began to fill his thoughts, he nearly jumped out of his armor as a small soft slither of flesh brushed up against his ankle joint.

"Hey hey! Calm down! It's only me!" Morri tried to calm him as she stepped back to avoid being knocked over, "What the hell are you doing down here?"

"I-" Deathshot took a deep breath in through his vents as he collected his composure: "Shadowstar was tailing you"

"What?!" Morri exclaimed, keeping her voice low,

"I saw you tailing Majestrix, and she was tailing _you_: she-

That was when it hit him.

'_Why didn't she tell Blackshot Majestrix was right there?' _ He suddenly realized,

He heard it plain as day over Blackshot's open comm line: Shadowstar was obviously part of her 'team', and she requested a status report on Majestrix's current whereabouts. So why did she lie?

Majestrix would've overheard everything Blackshot had said, as had Morri. Why would she do that?

Unless...

"D?" Morri raised an eyebrow, as she watched the expression on her guardian's face turn into the thousand mile stare; and as she laid her hand on his leg, he suddenly snapped out of it: "Never mind. Listen we need to get back up the command center and tell Prime about this"

"No bloody shit, come on!" Morri didn't have to guess what he'd overheard, as she leaped into his waiting hand, and scrambled up onto his shoulder as he paced off silently down the corridor, back towards the upper levels.

...But what he hadn't picked up: was Longrange hiding behind the corner of the next corridor; deciding to tie up this 'loose end', the young sniper took a different route, back to the upper levels, and activated his comm...

**: It's me, we've got a serious problem... :**

* * *

><p>Outside the command center:<p>

She didn't know what to feel more,

Angry?

Upset?

Outraged?

A combination of all three? In any case, she wasn't in an agreeable mood: she just wished that her uncle would leave this place, and leave her and her family in peace. What was the real point of all this? National security and potential intelligence leaks be damned: there was something Lawrence wasn't telling them; and it annoyed her to no end.

As she wiped the tears from her eyes, Hailey took a deep breath, and tried to regain her composure: in preparation to rejoin her family, who were waiting in the rec-room. As she stepped around the corner, she was greeted by a rather concerned-looking Bluestreak, along with Skywarp and Novastar, and an even more worried-looking Jay-jay and Annabelle; Violet too didn't seem to be pleased from where she sat atop Novastar's shoulder. "... Oh, uh? What're you guys doing here?" she asked offhand.

"Blue told us about what happened: between you, your creators and your uncle?" Skywarp shrugged, "We figured you could probably use moral support"

Before she could reply, Jay-jay approached her with a box of tissues, and gazed at her with a rather apologetic look. Hailey couldn't help but smile at Jay-jay's gesture, as she pulled out a couple of tissues from the box, and wiped her eyes. "Don't go away Hailey, plees?"

"Don't worry sweetie" Hailey sighed, "I don't intend on going anywhere"

"Good, because we intend to help" Novastar added: as Jason stepped out from behind Skywarp's ankle, and approached his daughter. "Dad..." Hailey approached him, "Hey cupcake..." he sighed as he embraced her in a warm hug, gently stroking her long blond hair: "...I'm sorry, for all this nonsense: it's a whole load of trouble you don't need"

She pulled out of the hug, and looked him in the eye: "Why the hell's he being like this?"

"I don't know sweetie" was all he could offer, "But as far as US presidents go, I can't say he's making a good impression with _this_"

Thinking back to the argument in the debriefing room, something occurred to Hailey she hadn't considered before: "...What you said back there; what made you guys fall out with each other in the first place, to hate each other so bad?"

For about a tenth of a second, there was a brief flash of reluctance in Jason's eyes, and then he sighed and shook his head: "...It's ancient history; family troubles that-, aren't yours to worry about..." he leaned forward and kissed her on the forehead. "But right now, we need to try and figure out how to convince him to change his mind..."

As she tried to think straight, Hailey glanced over at Jay-jay, and suddenly, she got an idea: "There's one idea we can try," she smiled as she approached the sparkling, "Jay-jay, do you want t help me out here?"

"Yeah!" the little femme beamed excitedly, "Me too!" Annabelle piped in,

"Come on, I'd like you to meet my uncle" she gently took her by the hand, and lead her to the command center, with their entourage following close behind. Her father in particular, readied his guard, and braced himself for round two: he had faith in his daughter, but his cynicism towards his brother had him convinced this was not going to work out. In any case, he brought up the rear, and started planning his next line of defense, (being a lawyer, dealing with this complex line of difficult persuasion was nothing new to him: the fact it was his own brother, was what made it all the more harder to negotiate).

As Hailey and Jay-jay entered the command center, Sam glanced at her with his usual casual smile and nod; and as the doors slid open, he concentrated on studying the layout of the room, and everyone within it. When the doors closed again, he jogged off back to the corner of the intersection, where Ashley, Tom and Danny were waiting for him.

"Okay, the good news is, your dad's in there: the bad news? So is Galloway and the president" Sam stated.

"Bollocks: you three will have to go in without me" Ashley huffed,

"I dunno how we're gonna tell your old man this is an emergency? He'd take you more seriously if you told him yourself" Sam pointed out.

"Well I can't go in there without Galloway seeing me! As far as the bloke's concerned, I'm still a twelve foot human alien hybrid; he doesn't know about my new 'abilities'" Ashley retorted.

Thinking about it for a moment, Tom then interjected: "All right, I'll go in and get uncle Johny: Sam, you go back in there and find Bee and Prime, we're going to need all the help we can get if this turns out to be real"

"Okay" Sam nodded, "You two wait here, and stay out of sight" he added, as he and Tom snuck off back towards the command center. Upon entering the room, the two boys looked at one another, and started looking around the various faces for their quarry.

Instantly spotting his guardian, who was talking with Prowl, Optimus, Eclipse and Ultra Magnas: Sam moved off to try and grab Bumblebee's attention, and at the same time, try to get Optimus alone: while Tom made his way over to his uncle. Slipping his way through the group of soldiers, John spotted his nephew, and upon seeing the look of concern in his eyes, moved towards him...

"What're you doing here? We're sort of in the middle of something" John told him,

"I apologize" Tom stated, "Listen I need to talk to you alone"

Frowning in concern, John leaned in closer: "Something wrong? Is it Ashley?"

"...Sort of" Tom replied in uncertainty, "-Don't worry, nothing's wrong with him, it's just-...he _overheard_ something: something that-, might be trouble. We need to find D"

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, elsewhere on the base:<p>

"Hmm..." Soundwave pondered as he gazed down at the encryption on the parchments, "It's not a liner-based code: and the alignment isn't based on prime numbers...This is truly, a most perplexing encryption. I'll have to recalibrate the pattern sequencing of my-

The communication officer's line of thought suddenly stopped, as his mind began to pick up the mental essence of another sentient being, It was quite far away from here, but approaching fast,

'_A cybertronian?'_ he wondered,

'_Can't be: can't you feel it?'_ he sensed Ravage within his chest compartment,

Sure enough, Soundwave could sense that whatever this unknown entity was, its mind didn't feel like that of a cybertronian; a human then? If it was, it was no human mind he'd sensed before; as he tried to 'look' closer into its thoughts, all he could sense was something akin to mental 'white noise': static and blurred with no clear line of intention or forethought. Whoever they were, they were either not conscious, or undergoing a process of severe mental trauma; both were a daunting prospect, and as he sensed the entity approach NEST's airspace, he sensed Crystalwing reaching out to him with the same concern.

'_Soundwave, do you sense that?' _

'_I do,' _he assured her, _'quickly; we must get to the command center, and warn the others' _

At that moment, Soundwave opened his chest compartment and ejected Ravage, who unfurled in mid-air, and landed on all fours. "Do what you must, I'll take care of things from my end" he assured him, and the panther-drone galloped off, locating his brother's minds and summoning them to him.

From the speed at which he could sense the entity approaching, Soundwave knew he didn't have a lot of time: quickly, but carefully, he gathered up the parchments, and having no time to locate Morri and return them, he decided to stash them away in his sub-space. He figured he'd return them to her later, and explain why he held onto them. Satisfied the parchments were safe, he then left the hanger, and expanded his telepathy to try and locate Crystalwing...

* * *

><p>At the same time, back in the Command center:<p>

Sam discreetly moved in, to try and tap Optimus on his foot to get his attention: but as Optimus watched Hailey and her father try to plead with Lawrence in Bishop's office, his comm beeped:

**: Optimus, do you read me? This is an emergency: **

**: I read you Soundwave, what is wrong? : **

**: Sir, I just sensed an unknown entity, inbound towards the base:**

**: A Decepticon? :**

**: No sir, I can't be certain but it feels like a human of some kind: whatever it is, I can't get a clear reading on its mind: **

That last part sent up a big red flag in the back of Optimus's mind, as what he remembered of Broadsword suddenly came to mind.

**: Sir, you don't suppose it may be Broadsword again, do you? :**

**: That's just what I was thinking: **Prime stated, **: Report to the command center immediately, I'm putting the base on code reed, have your drones ready to mobilize: **

**Already done sir, over and out: **

"Um, sir?" one of the human techs grabbed his attention: "Air traffic control just reported an anomaly fast approaching from the north-west. Doesn't look like a Decepticon, but it's not one of ours either"

Frowning in concern, Prime turned to address his officers: "Initiate code red: seal off all exterior exists and prime the base's defense systems"

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, miles away:<p>

Cruising high over the desert, a brilliant blue fireball sped over the mountains and over the interstate highway: turning one way and then another; it almost seemed to be lost, as if uncertain of which direction to take, or where its destination was. It then stared to climb up, gaining altitude until it reached over five thousand feet, and stopped...

Far away: just peering out from behind the foot of a mountain, the top of what looked like an air traffic control tower could be seen through the partial cloud cover. The anomaly then dropped down, and began picking up speed again, as it made a bee-line for the tower...

* * *

><p>Back inside NEST:<p>

Klaxons blared to life, and red lights flashed along the corridor walls as the whole base instantly began to buzz with activity. Every bot and human reported to their post, ready for their orders: while those who were not part of the unit, were left to find shelter and get out of the way as best they could.

"Come on Mr President, Mr Galloway, we need to get you both somewhere safe" Bishop stated as he and the president's security detail accompanied the gentlemen down the stairs of the walkway to the ground floor: "We have a specially constructed panic room for just such an occasion"

"Very well, but I'm not going in there without my family" Lawrence stated vehemently,

"I've got to go: Mikaela and Ratchet will need me in the med-bay..." Hailey stated as she helped Jay-jay climb over the walkway railings, and into Bluestreak's waiting arms: "Jay-jay sweetie, Hailey's gotta go do her thing. I'll see you later when this is over okay?" she assured her with a reassuring kiss on the forehead: "Okay, bub-buy" Jay-jay waved good-bye, as Bluestreak quickly hurried her out of the command center. As Hailey hurried down the stairs, Lawrence was quick to try and stop her.

"I meant _all_ my family: you're not going anywhere" Lawrence stated,

"Like hell I am!-" Hailey retorted, "If something happens and we get casualties, the med-bay's gonna need an extra pair of hands!"

"You told me you were an Autobot 'nanny', not a medic" Lawrence pointed out,

"It's called _multitasking_, look it up!" Hailey retorted, but as she reached the bottom of the stairs, one of the security guards placed a hand on her shoulder and jerked her back. "HEY!-"

"HEY!-" Jason rushed the guard, and immediately smacked his hand off his daughter's shoulder: "_Don't you dare lay a hand on my-_

Thwack!

The guard's punch caught Jason completely off guard, and as he staggered backwards in a daze, the rest of the security detail were quick to tackle him, and wrestle him to the ground.

"DADDY!" Hailey yelled in a panic as she tried the wrestle one of the guards off her father; Optimus was set to step in and break up the scuffle, until the president beat him to it. "WAIT!-" Lawrence shouted angrily, and the guards stopped, "That's my brother! Let go of him!" he ordered, to which the men did without hesitation. Helping her father off the floor, Hailey let him lean on her as he rubbed his sore jaw, whilst waiting for his equilibrium to stop spinning. Lawrence moved in to try and help, but Hailey swatted his hand away.

"Don't!-" she angrily spat, "Just-, _don't_. Go and hide if you must, but I gotta job to do" she stated, before turning her attention back to her father, as she lead him out of the command center: "Come on dad, Ratchet will have some ice for that..."

Having watched the incident, the Autobots and humans in the room gazed at the president with a level of uncertainty, even Lennox and his men weren't sure what to think. Had it been anyone else they may have rushed to the president's aide without question: but knowing Hailey, and by extension her parents, somewhat changed the dynamics of where the true loyalty lay in all this.

Sensing this had the potential to become worse, Bishop decided to get the president out of here: "...Mr President?" he gestured to the door.

Lawrence didn't say anything, and merely followed Bishop as he led the way to the panic room: catching a glimpse of his brother and Hailey, as they made their way to the med-bay.

"Okay, focus people: we got a code red to worry about" Lennox stated, changing the subject, (and thankful the Waineright's were now out of the room): "Call it Prime, what've we got?"

"An unidentified anomaly heading straight for our airspace: have your men ready to move out in case things get dicey: we'll take point on any offensive measures this anomaly throws at us" Optimus stated.

"Done: okay guys let's suit up!" the major barked, "Briggs, I want you and your men to-

But when the Major turned to where he thought John had been standing, he saw he was gone: even the other Royal marines were surprised to see he was absent.

"...Where's he gone?"

At the other end of the room, hidden behind one of the large bot-sized consoles: John stared at his nephew in a mix of confusion and alarm: "-Wait a minute: Eclipse tried to _kill_ Soundwave?!" he exclaimed in a hushed voice.

"Yes but-, _listen_, that's the least of it. I don't know what's going on but from what Ashley told me it sounds like something big's going on" Tom explained anxiously.

"Where's Morri right now?" he pressed him,

"Tailing Majestrix, I've no idea where they are: and I don't know where D is either"

"John? ..." Lennox called out

"Come on mate! We got arse to kick!" he heard one of his men bark

"Shit..." John cursed, "Listen, I can't do anything right now: find D and fill him in: I'm sorry Tom but you'll have to handle this yourselves" he patted him on the shoulder, and went to back to rejoin his men.

Huffing in frustration, Tom didn't argue or object: and as he placed his hands on his hips, he tried to think of an alternative plan. "Hey-"Sam interrupted, "Looks like more trouble",

"Any luck with Bee or Prime?" Tom asked,

Sighing in defeat, Sam gazed over his shoulder at Prime, who was busy consulting with his officers, including his guardian: "I was just about to open my mouth when that comm came in and Prime hit the code red"

"That's going to keep them busy for a while" Tom realized, "I don't think we're going to get any help here: I couldn't find Darren either, so it looks like we're going to have to improvise"

"Agreed," Sam nodded, "Come on, we can at least try to find Morri and D, and then figure out what to do..." he led the way discreetly out of the command center, being careful no t to draw any attention. As the doors closed behind them, Tom caught a glimpse of his uncle standing amongst the other soldiers; and wondered if he should have tried to convince him to come and help them with this?

"Problems?" Optimus asked the Yorkshire-man,

"Nothing I can't handle" John stated, before considering what Tom had told him"...Though, I'd like to speak to you in privet, later: if that's okay with you?"

"That will be fine" Optimus nodded, "But for now, our attention must be focused on the situation at hand"

"Uh, Prime?" Portia grabbed his attention as she studied the data on the console she was stationed at: "The Black Solstus's long-range scanners have picked up something strange; the anomaly _is indeed_ human: bio-scanners confirm it. But-...well? See for yourself..." she pointed to the monitor. As he leaned over her shoulder for a look at the monitor, Prime studied the data carefully: but the more he read, the more his concern began to grow, as he recognized something very familiar about the energy readings the anomaly was putting out...

Quickly, he stepped away from the monitor, and activated his comm, **: Deathshot, do you read me, over?: **

* * *

><p>At the same time: at the other end of the central level.<p>

"Okay...Okay..." Morri rubbed her temples as she tried to think straight: "A coup; _where the hell do we even start_ with trying to stop a coup?!"

"We have to tell Prime, and tell him to lock the base down: I don't care what the code red is, this takes top priority" Deathshot stated vehemently.

"Listen, that 'device' they were talking about: I think it may have been kept in the hanger Majestrix hid in; there were marks made by a giant tripod of some kind: any ideas as to what it could be?" Morri thought aloud

"Not a clue, there were many weapons that utilized a tripod as part of their design: but that wouldn't make any sense, to threaten everyone into submission with just a bomb or an EMP emitter? Unless it's going to be used on someone else..." the sniper speculated, before his mind returned to Shadowstar, "...What I don't get is: why did Shadowstar lie like that?"

Thinking about what he'd told her on the way up to the command center, there was only one logical explanation for the sphinx-drone's irregular behavior: "Isn't it obvious? She-

But as they rounded the corner, the sniper abruptly stopped in his tracks: Morri nearly fell down his front as she almost didn't grab the edge of his shoulder plate in time. She was about to ask why they'd stopped, when she saw the reason standing less than seventy yards in front of them...

Longrange stood in the middle of the corridor, deliberately blocking their way: from the way he gazed at them, Deathshot knew right away that he'd made them out, (somehow...)

"...Where're you two going in such a rush?" the younger sniper smirked,

"There's a code red in progress: didn't you hear the klaxons?" Morri replied right off the bat.

"True, but I don't recall hearing Prime summoning you both..." he stated, as he folded his wings closer together: and the sound of his wrist-guns cocking could be heard", I'm sure whatever it is, it can wait a little while" he smiled as he widened his stance: as if he were getting ready to attack.

Realizing he was about to rush him, Deathshot readied himself, **:Listen to me carefully...: **he told Morri via her earpiece on their privet channel, **: When he comes at me, I want you to run for it: I'll keep him pinned down and buy you some time to get to the command center, it's just eight hundred yards around the next corner: **

Glancing past Longrange's shoulder at said corridor, Morri didn't like the prospect of having to make the dash; especially if someone like Longrange was in the way. But she didn't doubt her guardian, and she knew he could hold his own; being the older, more experienced combatant: she didn't even have to speculate if the odds would be in his favor. But just to be sure, she reached for her CTG, and discreetly primed the weapon's system, ready to fire anything at a second's notice.

"...Okay" she whispered as softly as she could: she knew his sensitive audios heard her.

"Why? Is there something you wish to discuss?" Deathshot asked, deliberately humoring him as he activated his own wrist-guns...

The tenseness of the atmosphere was about to break, when suddenly-

**: Deathshot, do you read me, over? I need you to come to the command center right away, over: **

Both snipers and the one human were taken aback by the sound of Prime's voice emanating from Deathshot's loudspeakers,

**: ... Copy that:** the sniper replied. Simultaneously, they both offlined their wrist-guns; and Longrange merely gazed daggers at them both, as they moved forward. "...I guess it'll have to wait..." he stated coolly.

As he walked by him, Deathshot and Longrange gazed at each other intently; they both knew what the other knew: and as he turned the corner, Deathshot knew this had just become much more dangerous. "From this point on, you _don't_ leave my side for anything, understand?" he told his charge, "definitely" she sighed anxiously.

Picking up the pace, they made it to the command center: and without taking any time to fill him in on what's going on, Optimus jumped right in as he beckoned the sniper to his side. "Tell me Deathshot, what does this look like to you?" he pointed to the data on the main monitor.

Looking at said data, Deathshot was a bit perplexed at what he was reading: "It's-, the energy signature the BSHB's gave off when activated by their users"

Optimus frowned, "I suspected as much," he then activated his comm; **: Wheeljack, do you read me?:**

**: I read you Prime! :** The scientist replied as he primed some new prototype weapons.

**: Tell me, what is the state of the BHSB's? :**

**: The BSHB's? ... :** the scientist went over to the corner of his lab, where the vault containing his most valuable and dangerous inventions stood; typing in the key-code to the access panel, the lock unbolted and the huge metal door swung open, he then pulled out the draw containing the BSHB's containment unit, and gazed through the reinforced glass lid at the tiny devices inside, **:Well sure, they're right- **

But he stopped mid-sentence, as he saw one of the holding clasps inside was empty.

**:... Oh no, one of the device's is missing! :** he panicked

"That confirms it" Prime sighed

"I don't understand, what's going on?" Deathshot demanded.

"It would seem one of your BSHB's is currently being used by someone else, other than one of our human comrades" Prime stated, to which Deathshot only stared at him in alarm. "The code red, it's a human: and it's right now, it's hovering right over the air strip" Portia filled the sniper in.

"What?" Morri blinked in surprise; gazing up at the security feeds of the outside of the base on the main monitor, she saw what looked like a large vivid blue energy orb, floating like a dandelion seed over the main runway of the base's air strip, with energy licking off its semi-transparent surface like flames, and in the center of the orb, the glowing white silhouette of a human figure could be vaguely made out.

"...Bloody hell..." Morri gasped, "Who is it?"

"Unknown: but whoever they are, we can't read their mind" Soundwave pointed out from where he stood on the other side the console with Crystalwing: "It must be a device of some kind, or someone with a highly acute level of perception, able to block us out; in any case, we can't tell what their intentions are" she added.

"If their intention was to take us by surprise then they obviously don't have tactical knowledge of the base: our external security grid is tracking their every move and they've lost the element of surprise" Ironhide observed,

"But it's not like they made any attempt to hide their presence either: air traffic control spotted them when they came within two hundred miles of our airspace, and they didn't attempt to use the mountainous topography to conceal themselves. They _wanted _us to see them coming" Chromia added.

"Regardless of how and why, this human is possession of _my_ tech" Deathshot stated, "And that's _not_ good"

"Which is why I need you to go out there, and see if you can take control of the nanites that make up the device: like you said, it's your tech, no one knows the BHSB's better than you do Deathshot" Prime stated

"No problem" Deathshot replied as he handed Morri over to Optimus: for a brief moment, she glanced at him as if to say 'I thought you told me not to leave you?'. He merely gazed at her with an apologetic look, and glanced sideways at Optimus, as if to beckon her to stay with him; she nodded, and scurried up onto the Prime's shoulder, much to Optimus's surprise...

"Stay with Prime, I'll be back shortly" he stated, and hurried out of the command center, towards the entrance of the open-air hanger. Prime gently took Morri off his shoulder, and moved to place her down on the console, when she suddenly grabbed his thumb: "Optimus wait!-", he stopped, "I know what's going on outside is serious, but there's something I need to tell you right now!"

"I'm afraid it'll have to wait youngling" he stated,

"No listen! It's Blackshot, she-

At that moment, the whole commend center went pitch black as the lights went out and all the computers switched off,

CLANG!

Someone's fist made contact with the side of Prime's jaw, _hard_. So much so that the force of the strike sent him toppling over onto his back, and in the motion of falling he felt Morri suddenly yanked out of his grasp. In a split second he onlined his night-vision, only to catch a glimpse of a dark shadow dashing past his head, heading for the door.

The power suddenly came back on, and the door to the command center closed.

But no sooner had everyone spotted Optimus laying on the floor with a noticeable ding in his jaw-plate: the Prime sprung back up onto his feet, and was out the door in a second. As his officers chased after him, he stopped and glanced both ways down the corridor: who was it that punched him? Where did they go? And why did they take Morri?

"Optimus! What the slag just happened?!" Ironhide gasped

"I don't know Ironhide, but this situation just became more serious" Prime frowned,

* * *

><p>Multitasking, that's the key here Optimus :

Stay tuned, and don't forget to R&R on your way out :)


End file.
